


The Snow Queen and the Mirror

by Unironicdokis



Category: Frozen (2013)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Good Hans, Post-Canon, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-04-22
Updated: 2014-11-09
Packaged: 2018-01-20 08:36:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 43,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1503893
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Unironicdokis/pseuds/Unironicdokis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"It was all Anna's fault really...<br/>because once you open your door to one person, anyone can come in."</p><p>Canon divergence/Post-Frozen/(Somewhat) Good Guy Hans AU in which he did not try to kill her.<br/>It all started with a balcony. And they both have a long way to go if they ever want to thaw.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "It was all Marcus' fault really...  
> because once you open your door to one person, anyone can come in."  
> \- _About a Boy_ , based on the book by Nick Hornby

Elsa had snuck off to the balcony and shut the doors behind her, hoping to momentarily escape being swamped by her advisors and other political officials who had been hounding her since the Arendelle castle gates had been reopened.

She sighed with relief, shutting her eyes and leaning against the closed doors. "Thank goodness." At last she had a moment of peace and quiet.

"You would think the new Queen of Arandelle would be busier."

"Prince Hans!" Elsa nearly jumped with surprise. "I apologize, I didn't expect anyone to be out here." She the possibility of leaving entered her mind, but although she considered it, she figured it would be too impolite.

"Oh, it's alright." The smiling prince was sitting on the balcony ledge. However, he stood up to scrutinize her more closely. "Not hiding, are you?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

She gulped, uncomfortable under the pressure of his gazing eyes. "What? No, no don't be ridiculous," she said, attempting to sound casual. "I just... needed a break, that's all." But she heard loud footsteps coming from the other side of the door and squeaked, in her panic freezing a thick layer of ice over the door—particularly over the handle—in an attempt to seal it shut.

"Uh-uh." He gave her a skeptical look. "Queen Elsa, not to be disrespectful to the ruler of Arandelle, the gracious host of what has been my home for the past few days, and the wielder of potentially deadly ice powers, but I'm afraid you're a terrible liar."

She gave a small, sheepish laugh, but a part of her was surprised at his willingness to not only be jovial with her but to be genuine as well. "Guess I'll have to work on that." Distant voices could be heard from the other side of the door. She glanced uneasily over her shoulder and then back at him. "Look, can I just stay out here with you for a little while? I'm just feeling a little overwhelmed right now." Not that being alone on a moonlit balcony with your sister's ex-fiancé was exactly the most comfortable situation in the world, but it definitely could have been worse.

Hans nodded. "Of course. I understand," he said, to which she was grateful.

They sat together in silence. Hans turned to admire the city and the glittering mass of water as the moonlight shone upon the landscape. "Wow," he practically breathed. "Look at the view." There was something wistful to his voice that peaked her interest.

"It is beautiful," was all she could think to say in reply.

He sighed. "I sure am going to miss this place when I leave tomorrow."

"Leaving so soon?" she asked, the disappointment apparent in her voice. As for why she was disappointed, she wasn't entirely positive. She was grateful that he had taken care of her kingdom in her absence, yes... and he had practically saved her. But it was ridiculous. The man was practically a stranger.

"I'll be gone first thing in the morning. Besides..." He smiled half-heartedly. "I'm sure I've way outstayed my welcome by now."

"No! Not at all!" she insisted profusely. He was quite the opposite of a burden—even his presence now was actually very soothing—but at the same time, she had no idea what would really compel him to stay now that the engagement had been broken. "You've been wonderful. You know..." She dropped her gaze down to her feet, avoiding his eyes. "We... I... never properly thanked you for how much you've done for us. For Arandelle."

"Your hospitality has been more than enough to show your thanks," said Hans graciously.

"Well, you're welcome to stay as long as you need before you decide go head back home," offered Elsa. "And you're welcome to come back and visit whenever you like." She figured it was the least she could do for him.

"Thank you. One can only handle being with thirteen brothers for so long before they get sick of it."

She laughed, to which he chimed in as well upon seeing her reaction.

His expression then grew solemn. "They probably didn't even notice I was gone." He sighed, turning once more to face the balcony view. "I was hoping I could build myself a future here, you know?" he confessed. "I'd finally have a place of my own where I'd actually belong."

"Sometimes, things don't work out the way we expect them too," said Elsa. She had no idea if her words had actually helped him, but it was the most comforting thing she could think to say at the moment.

He didn't answer.

She tried again. "Think about it this way. If it weren't for you and Anna, then I would never have decided to open the gates."

Hans ignored her. "Kristoff seems like a nice guy."

She nodded. "He is. I mean, he's a little rough around the edges," she admitted. "But he's a good guy." Elsa was ready to defend her sister's choice in partner if need be, but to her relief it didn't have to come to that.

"I'm glad to hear that."

At least he didn't seem bitter. She shrugged, sighing. "And he makes her happy, so that's what matters."

"Well, Anna's not the only one who seems happier," he said, giving Elsa a pointed look.

She nodded. "I'm working on it. I feel much better than before." The anxiety was still there, of course; it came with the stress of the job, but now at least she had a loving sister to depend on.

"The new look says it all. I mean, look at you now. You're a vision!" he said, the admiration apparent in his voice.

She smiled bashfully at the compliment, her eyes carefully averted toward the ground. "Thank you."

"Now isn't this much better then staying locked up in your room all day?"

 _Was it better than staying locked up in her room alone all day?_ Despite the fact that she was busier than she had ever been in her life, despite the fact that an entire kingdom looking to her for leadership was a huge weight of responsibility on her shoulders, despite the fact that she had never been particularly keen on crowds and being so visible in the public eye, and despite the fact that she felt a gnawing guilt at the fact that she was unable to spend as much time with her darling sister as she wished, she absolutely knew the answer to the question.

"Yes," she mused. "I daresay it is... I... I feel free." And the best part was that she was free without having to be alone.

Just then there was an abrupt knock on the door, startling them both. "Queen Elsa?" a muffled voice called from the other side.

"About as free as the ruler of a country gets anyway," muttered Hans. Elsa silently agreed, the prospect of her needing to face her duties grounding her, bringing her back to reality. She was a queen, and she had a kingdom to run.

The doorknob rattled, but the ice did not give way. The voice came again. "I don't remember there being a lock on this door."

"I guess I'd better go," said Elsa. "Honestly I expected them to find me a lot sooner than they did." She wasn't sure exactly how much time had gone by, but it was definitely much more than she had expected. Which was a good thing, even if she hadn't been completely alone as she had wished. All the same, she dreaded to think of what anyone would say once they found her alone with her sister's former fiancé.

Hans stood up and bowed. "Sorry to cut into your leisure time, Queen Elsa. I'm sure you probably would have preferred to have the time to yourself during your 'break'."

"Oh no, you've been excellent company," she reassured him, standing up. Of course, anybody who wasn't demanding important decisions from her was in her view excellent company, but Elsa found that she genuinely had enjoyed her time with him and that thankfully it hadn't been quite as awkward as she had anticipated. However, the knocking ceased before she could open the door, and the sound of footsteps quickly grew fainter.

"They'll probably be back," said Hans, and in her heart she knew that he was right. "You should probably go before they do, if you want to give 'em the slip."

Her eyes widened. "A-are you sure?" She had already resigned herself to the prospect of being caught shirking her responsibilities and was ready to accept her fate. However, the chance to slip out from under their noses once more was tempting.

"Sure, I'll cover for you."

"But wouldn't that be irresponsible of me?" she asked warily, voicing her concerns. She didn't quite understand why he was doing this for her. After all, they hadn't exactly gotten off on the right foot, but the past seemed to be behind him.

He shrugged. "Maybe. All I'm saying is that it's not wrong to need a break once in a while."

Maybe he was right. Elsa took a deep breath. "Alright." With a wave of her hand, she conjured up a set of steps made of snow heading down from the balcony. She climbed over the ledge, the snow freezing into solid ice as she set foot upon them.

Before leaving, she turned to face him one last time. "Hans?" Their eyes met. She nodded to him, smiling gratefully. "Thanks."

"No problem."

"I was never here," she said pointedly.

He chuckled. "As you wish."

"Elsa!" The knocking was back, this time much louder and much more forceful than before. "Elsa! I know you're in there!" The voice unmistakably belonged to Anna. What her sister could possibly want from her, Elsa had no idea, but she didn't sound too happy.

"Go," he mouthed.

Elsa biting her lip, smiling at him, staying just a bit too long on the top step. "Bye." She gave him a small wave which he returned, and in one swift movement, she unfroze the ice upon the door then rushed down the steps, and was gone from sight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I dont know, I just like Helsa. I'll probably continue this. Hope you enjoyed, please read and review.


	2. Preparations

"Yes, that's perfect. Thank you. I'm sure any decision you make, it will look great. I trust your judgement."

"Do you always oversee every little thing when it comes to stuff like this?" a male voice asked from behind her.

"I do when my cousin is coming down to visit," said Elsa apprehensively. She hadn't noticed him approaching her, but she didn't turn to look at him. "Actually," she said, addressing one of her staff, "keep the curtains open. The full moon is out tonight."

She took a deep breath, trying to keep her nerves under control. The less worked up she got, the less likely there was to be any incidents. She wished Anna where with her; there was a calming presence about her little sister that eased her worry, but she was readying herself for the ball. Besides, the organizing and the planning and beforehand preparations for an event such as this was not exactly Anna's forte anyhow.

"Anxious?" he asked.

"You have no idea."

_Everything will be fine. I love my job. I love my job. I love my job._

"I'm sure everything will be great, don't worry."

"Thanks," she said, but his words did little to reassure her. She felt scatterbrained, like she was being pulled in too many directions at once. "This is the first time we've done anything like this since the coronation, and that was when I tried to keep my interactions with people as little as possible."

"And now?" he asked.

She sighed. "Now it's people themselves that scare me more than the fear of hurting them. Everybody looks to me for answers. It's terrifying."

It was like being under a microscope. She felt like she was being watched like a hawk; everybody staring, just waiting for her to make her first mistake.

"I've heard that's a thing that happens when you're placed in a position of authority," said Hans with an amused grin.

Although Elsa appreciated his attempts at humor, her mind was too sidetracked to give a proper answer. She began pacing around the enormous hall, making minor tweaks and adjustments to whatever she felt needed correcting. Fix the tablecloth here. Move the flowers there. Switch around the placement of the assorted desserts. And where was the guest list again?

"Do you think the orchestra would look better in the far left corner or in the center back of the room?" she asked, looking to him for his call on judgement.

He stood beside her, eyes following her line of sight. "Far left, definitely."

"Hm... That's what I was thinking." She looked around again, doing a sweep of the room with her eyes for any bugs that needed fixing. "Alright," she muttered to herself, "so the tables to the right and the food goes over there against the wall and the band..."

"Are you ok?" he asked.

She turned to face him again and saw that he was looking at her with a concerned expression. "Fine. Absolutely fine, what would make you think otherwise?" said Elsa, trying to reassure herself as well as Hans of her wellbeing. She wasn't sure how convincing she sounded; she was sure that her voice was just a little too shrill.

He gestured to the ceiling. "You're making it snow."

She was so caught up in her head that she hadn't even noticed, but she looked up and found that he was right. Little white snowflakes were falling slowly from the ceiling and down into the hall around them. She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts, and the snow dissipated into thin air. "I'm a little anxious, is all."

"Your Majesty, not that I'm in a position to tell you what to do, but I think you need to relax."

"But I have to oversee everything to make sure—"

"Go. Relax," insisted Hans. "I'll take care of everything."

"Oh no." She shook her head. He'd already done a favor for her out on the balcony, she couldn't ask this of him, too. Plus, it was her job. She didn't think it was fair to hand of something that was her responsibility off to somebody else. "I couldn't possibly—"

"It's not a problem. Besides..." He grinned. "I got you covered, remember?"

She bit her lip. "Are you sure?" Why was he doing this for her? She'd long since come to accept the fact that being a ruler sometimes meant having to do all the boring stuff nobody else wanted to do, let alone willingly take upon their back of their own volition.

"Queen Elsa, I swear to attend any and every issue that arises personally if that is required of me. Everything will be fine," he said, and there was such sincerity in her voice that she desperately wanted to believe him. Everything will be absolutely fine. "Have a little trust."

 _Have a little trust._ Something about the words struck a cord with her. "Alright," she finally agreed.

"There we go. Now go, get out of here before I change my mind," he said, laughing. It was comfortable, easy, as if the two of them were old friends. It was strange, but she liked it.

Elsa smiled back at him one last time, thanking him before at last leaving the evening in his hands.

—

"Really I don't know why you're wearing the dark one. Your blue dress is so nice."

"Well yes, but I wear it all the time," said Elsa, trying to reason with her sister as she looked over her reflection in the mirror. She held out the heavy, dark blue fabric out in front of her body, trying to picture herself in it. "People will start to think I only have one outfit." Admittedly, she had grown fond of the light, shimmery sky blue dress, but a queen could hardly be seen at a ball in the clothes she wore all the time.

"Yeah, but that one is so dark and drab," said Anna, rolling over on her bed from her back and onto her stomach. 

"Stop that, you're going to wrinkle your dress," Elsa chastised her, turning to look at her sister disapprovingly. She had to admit, Anna looked quite pretty all dressed up for the occasion, little flowers placed in the loose knot at the back of her head, but if she mussed up her outfit or her hair it would just be a waste.

"Fine, but I get to pick something else for you to wear."

She sighed. "Alright." They'd been going back and forth like this for quite some time now; she figured she might as well just give in. It was a simple way of appeasing her.

Anna giggled in pleasure, getting up from bed, pulling a vibrant green dress out of the wardrobe and holding it out to her sister.

Elsa wrinkled her nose and shook her head.

"You said I could choose," said Anna, pouting.

"I did. Choose something else," said Elsa, unfazed by even Anna's best puppy-dog eyes.

"Fine, fine," she grumbled. She rummaged around for a bit for deciding on a purple dress with blue trim. "What about this?"

"That one's nice."

She threw it at Elsa, which she caught, even in her surprise. "Anna!" she scolded.

"Sorry, sorry," she said, but could see that Elsa was smiling, and she grinned back. "Go get changed."

Elsa left to change into the dress. She could hear Anna humming quietly to herself while she waited for her to finish.

A moment later she was back, wearing the dress. "What do you think?" she asked, holding her arms out wide.

Anna nodded in approval. "See? So much better than that drab piece your were going to wear." She crossed her arms, looking her sister up and down. "I have pretty great taste, don't you agree?"

Elsa rolled her eyes. If she was being honest with herself, she did agree, but she didn't want to give her baby sister the satisfaction. "Just help me with my hair." She sad down in front of the mirror, giving Anna an expectant look.

"What's the point? By the end of the night it always comes undone." Nevertheless, she went to work, putting Elsa's silvery blonde hair up in a twist.

"Anna?" asked Elsa, a thought occurring to her. She winced as she felt the hair pulling at her scalp.

"Mhm? Hold still."

"Where's Kristoff? I haven't see him all day." Of course, she had been very busy with preparations for the ball, but the man was often with Anna, so she found it odd that she hadn't crossed paths with him even once. She winced again. "Stop tugging."

"I'm trying, ok?" she said, and Elsa could see in the mirror that her brow was furrowed in concentration was she worked on Elsa's updo. "Anyways," she continued, "He's probably hiding in his room. You know how he is. He's having a little trouble adapting to castle life."

"Poor thing." For the most part, Kristoff's duties as Arandelle's official Ice Master and Deliverer kept him preoccupied, but, well, he was Anna's partner and was therefore expected to play the part. Socializing wasn't his strongest suit, and she felt for him because she did relate on a certain level. While Anna wasn't exactly the most tactful person she knew, she definitely didn't shy away from interaction with other people.

Anna shrugged. "Oh, I'll probably drag him out later. I know he's not necessarily a people person, but a little exposure would do him some good."

"Oh, let him be."

"He won't have to stay the whole time. Don't tell me how to run my love life, and I won't tell you how to run yours."

Elsa raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?" she asked, genuinely baffled at her sister's statement. With everything that she had on her plate nowadays, romance was probably the absolute furthest thing from her mind.

She grinned slyly. "I know you were with Hans on the balcony the other day."

"What? Anna don't be ridiculous," said Elsa, attempting to sound dismissive. Knowing Anna, it didn't fool her for a second.

"That balcony door doesn't have a lock."

She shrugged.

"Elsa, the door was ice cold."

Nope, there was no fooling her. "Well, that could have been anything. You know how the weather has been lately; nights have been so chilly." She tried to ignore the pins poking at her scalp.

"Elsa," said Anna, and she could see in their reflection that her sister was giving her a look.

"What?" she asked, giving her sister the most wide-eyed innocent look she could muster, but she could tell that Anna wasn't buying it.

"I really don't mind. Hans isn't a bad guy, and I think you could benefit from making a friend."

"I have friends," said Elsa defensively, her pride wounded. She had plenty of friends... Well, give it some time, and she was sure she would have plenty of friends. Besides, she figured it would be a little sad if the only friend she made was her sister's ex-fiancé. Regardless, this wasn't the case because she had plenty of friends, and they definitely were not friends.

"Olaf and Kristoff don't count."

_Damn._

"Why not?"

"Olaf is a snowman, and the only reason you're friends with Kristoff is because he's with me."

"I have other friends," said Elsa, but at this point her sister was giving her a look of such skepticism she was sure that any second her eyebrows were going to completely disappear behind a short fringe of red hair.

"Oh yeah?" said Anna. "Name one."

She racked her brains for a name, any name. "... Cousin Rapunzel?" she offered up, to which Anna laughed.

For a moment, they sat in silence, and to Elsa's relief she was almost certain the subject had dropped, but then Ann spoke up again. "You know, he's an absolute sweetheart."

"I know."

She didn't want to admit it, but he was. The events proceeding the coronation and the past couple day had been evident enough of it. She had been wrong about him. Of course, her initial judgements had been due to the fact that he had proposed to her sister, her darling baby sister, after merely a single evening, so that immediately set off a red flag in her mind. But now? Was is sweet? Yes. Impulsive? Definitely.

"And completely gorgeous," added Anna.

"Anna!" She really wished her face would remain was cool as the rest of her body, but she could feel the heat rising regardless of how hard she wished.

"So you agree?"

"Anna," Elsa said again, this time not with surprise and embarrassment but in a tone that indicated a warning to her sister not to persist further.

Anna ignored this. "Don't 'Anna' me, you know it's true."

Who was she kidding? Auburn hair, green eyes, winning smile. Impulsive or not, he was definitely handsome; she would give him that.

Not that it made Anna's probing questions and off-base assumptions appropriate at all. 

"Well on that basis alone, are you going to try and set me up with every attractive gentleman who sets foot in Arandelle?" she replied cooly. 

"Nope." She pursed her lips, and Elsa could tell she was surpressing a smile. "Just him. Although that does sound like something not far out of character for me."

She rolled her eyes, but was unable to shake her head due to Anna's hands still being in her hair. "You are ridiculous."

"I'm your sister. It's what I do."

"You know, I don't have to be in a relationship to be happy," Elsa reminded her. She had Anna now. Surely that was enough. Besides, relationships were a messy ordeal. There were always complications and unspoken rules that she didn't want to have to deal with. It was so much simpler to remain solo, where she could be free. 

"I know. But it's fun to pester you about it. That's finally something I can do, let me have it."

She chuckled. "Ok, ok. You know, guilt tripping me into allowing you to bug me under the guise of sisterly love is kind of twisted."

"I know," she said, sounding quite pleased with herself. "There." She gave a satisfied sigh, folding her arms and taking a step back to admire her handiwork. "Finished."

Elsa turned her head back and forth, examining her hair in the reflection. "It looks nice." 

"Thanks." She beamed.

It was a little looser than she would have preferred, but she could see how pleased Anna was at the small victory. Therefore, in Elsa's mind, it was nothing short of perfect.

She turned to look at her sister, returning the smile with an affectionate one of her own. "No, really. I love it." She stood up, doing a little twirl in place. 

"You are now the most beautiful woman in all of Arandelle. Now, will you trust my judgement?"

"From now on, I trust everything you say. But only when it comes to fashion, Miss 'Marry-The-Guy-I've-Known-For-One-Day."

"Hey, that was a low blow," said Anna, clutching her chest as though she were in pain.

She giggled, concealing it behind her hand out of sheer habit.

"In my defense, he was a really good dancer."

The two girls laughed in unison.

"I think he likes you," said Anna.

"And I think you're wrong," insisted Elsa, her previous good mood gone in an instant. 

"You never know."

"Don't be ridiculous."

She felt childish. Here she was, Queen of Arendelle, ruler of an entire kingdom, and yet she was having a discussion over whether a boy may or may not like her. When had he given any such indication that he was being anything other than just polite to her in general? 

"Are you going to dance with him tonight?" asked Anna.

"Maybe. If he asks me." She smiled momentarily at the thought before quickly regaining her composure. Despite the amount of progress she had made since the end of the eternal winter, she still wasn't particularly keen on a lot of physical contact with others. Anna was the exception rather than the rule. Something about her just kept her calm and relaxed, unless of course she was doing something to rile her up.

"I saw that."

Elsa ignored this comment. "He's nearly a stranger," she reminded her sister matter-of-factly.

"That can be changed given some time," Anna reminded Elsa in return.

She sighed. "Anna, I just don't think I could be in a relationship right now even if I wanted one."

"How come? Too scared?"

She shook her head. "Too busy." Elsa took Anna's hand in hers, leading her out of the room. "Come on, we'll be opening the gates soon."

"Alright, but just try to have a good time tonight, ok? You worry too much."

"I'll try, but only as long as you don't meddle." She would stop worrying when she ran out of things to worry about.

"I make no promises," she said mischievously. She ran off ahead of Elsa. "Race you to the the front gate!" she called back to her older sister, stumbling in her heels but catching her footing once more.

Elsa shook her head laughed, running to catch up with her younger sister.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Im such a slow writer. Sorry, not to much Helsa this chapter.There will be definitely be more next chapter, that's when the actual ball will be.


	3. Distractions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am a cliche and for that, I am truly sorry.

"I don't see why I have to be here," grumbled Kristoff, tugging at the collar of his shirt.

"Stop fidgeting," said Anna, her arm interlocked with his. "You look great, ok?"

He pouted. "I don't like being without Sven."

"How do you think people would react to seeing a reindeer standing in the middle of the ballroom? It's only for a little while."

He muttered something incoherent under his breath. Elsa chuckled quietly, and Kristoff gave her an awkward smile. She had to admit, he did look pretty dashing in a uniform. The man could clean up nicely, even if his hair was a little too long. He looked pretty uncomfortable though, and she couldn't help but feel a twinge of sympathy for him.

The melody being played came to a end, and the orchestra struck up a new chord, this time much more upbeat than the last.

"Oh, this is a good song!" said Anna, bright-eyed and excited. "Come dance with me." She tugged impatiently at the sleeve of Kristoff's coat.

"No, no." He shook his head fervently, eyes wide.

"Come on, it'll be fun!" she insisted, and Elsa knew he wouldn't be able to refuse for much longer.

"Anna, I can't dance," confessed Kristoff, but she ignored him, persisting with her pleading.

Nevertheless, Anna managed to drag Kristoff to the middle of the ballroom floor. Kristoff looked back at Elsa with a pleading look in his eye. She merely waved in return.

Elsa could hardly call whatever Anna and Kristoff were doing dancing. Kristoff wasn't lying about not knowing how to dance, and Anna's clumsiness would sometimes trip her up; however, Anna looked like she was enjoying herself, as did Kristoff even though he still seemed somewhat uncomfortable. She watched them with amusement from a distance, no desire to dance herself. Occasionally, Anna would catch Elsa's eye and smile which Elsa would return.

"You enjoying yourself?"

Elsa turned to the left to see Hans standing beside her. He wasn't looking at her, but was facing forward towards the ballroom floor as well. He smiled a crooked smile when their eyes met.

She took a deep breath. "Hanging in there," she replied. "Nothing's gone wrong yet, so that's good." Of course, it was still early in the evening, but they had managed to go without incident so far. And it was miles better than the last time the hall had been filled with guests.

"Let's keep our fingers crossed."

She nodded. "Thanks for taking over for me earlier by the way. You really didn't have to do that."

He shook his head. "No need to thank me. It was no trouble. All the credit belongs to you." He leaned in a little closer, and murmured, "Nice touch with the ice sculptures by the way."

They looked over at the statues of ice, glistening by the light of the chandeliers. Thankfully, they would not melt, due to Elsa's magic. "Thanks, I made them myself," she said with a small giggle. She could feel herself relaxing as she enjoyed his company, her worries alleviated just a little as they were momentarily put forth from her mind.

The two of them watched the dancers as they spiraled around and around, although most of Elsa's attention remained on Anna and Kristoff.

"Ok, can I just voice what I'm thinking?" asked Hans.

"Go ahead," she responded automatically in her curiosity.

"They are... awful."

She snorted, his bluntness catching her off guard. The two of them laughed as they unwittingly turned so that they were face each other.

He had this look in his eyes as he gazed upon her admiringly. "You look stunning tonight," he said to her.

She looked away from him shyly, smiling as she tried and failed not to blush. She was suddenly feeling very self-conscious.

Realizing what he had said, his eyes grew wide, and he quickly turned back to face the dancers. He coughed, clearing his throat. "Um... Perhaps we could—"

"Hans!" Anna's excited cry interrupted whatever he had been about to say. She waved to them from where she stood on the dance floor. She approached the two of them, toting Kristoff along behind her. "I didn't see you earlier."

"Hello, Anna," he said courteously, giving her a small bow. "Beautiful as always."

She curtsied in return. "Keeping my big sister company I see," she said, giving Elsa a smug grin. Elsa shot her a glare, but Anna ignored her.

"I just wanted to tell her how nice the ball has been."

"Uh-huh," she said, and Elsa could see her giving the two of them a skeptical look. "Elsa, there's no need to be such a stick in the mud. You should dance, loosen up, have some fun!"

"I'm fine right here, thank you," she said with a nod and a thin smile.

She turned to Hans instead, nudging him with her elbow. "So how about you? Just one dance."

Elsa was grateful that for once, Anna didn't persist. She much preferred being a passive observer. 

"May I?" he asked Kristoff, looking to him for approval, if it was ok to be stealing his dance partner away.

Kristoff held up his hands in defeat. "I'm done with dancing. If she wants to, then by all means, go ahead."

Anna beamed at him.

Hans looked over at Elsa. "Do you mind?" he asked her, his smile apologetic for leaving her company.

She shook her head. "Not at all," she replied although it was partly just about politeness.

"Just one dance," he promised to Kristoff and Elsa. "I can't disappoint my best girl."

Elsa rolled her eyes, smiling and shaking her head. She was surprised the two of them had remained in such good terms after the split although she supposed they must have reached some mutual understanding. She figured it must be because they already got along so well. She and Kristoff watched the two of them dance for a little while, spinning and twirling gracefully before Kristoff asked her, "Do you mind if I go? I want to check up on Sven, I kind of promised him."

"No, that's fine," she reassured him. She had very quickly learned not to question his thing with reindeer, and besides, who was she to judge? "Go ahead, I'll let Anna know."

He smiled gratefully before leaving her to her own devices. However, she found that she wasn't by herself for long; she was quickly brought into a conversation with a few of her guests.

—

Hans looked back to see that Elsa was no longer standing in her usual spot, but rather she conversing with some people he didn't recognize. She was smiling, and he could see that she for once she seemed to be rather enjoying herself. He accidentally caught her eye while she was mid-laugh, but they both quickly looked away, pretending it had never smiled. When she smiled, her face would light up, and he liked it; he liked it a lot. When his dance with Anna ended, he gave her a polite bow, but rather than wanting to interrupt Elsa's conversation, he decided he would catch up with her later.

—

Eventually, Elsa parted ways with her guests, with smiles and apologies with promises of "yes, we really must catch up sometime!". It occurred to her that despite having thrown the ball in celebration of her cousin's visit, she actually hasn't seen much of her since she had arrived. She weaved through the crowd of chatting people, scanning the room for any signs of Rapunzel.

She wished she had been looking where she was going because if she had, she probably would not have bumped into a familiar tall figure with red hair that was dressed in white.

"My apologies, your majesty," said Hans upon recognizing her.

"No, it was my fault," she said hastily, still looking through the crowd for any signs of her cousin's short brunette hair in the crowd. "I wasn't paying attention to where I was going."

"Actually, funny that I ran into you because I've been meaning to ask you—"

"Mhm?" she asked absentmindedly as she cut him off, only half listening to what he was saying as she craned her neck in the hope that she would be able to possibly catch sight of Rapunzel if she could see over the many heads in the ballroom. If only she were taller.

"Are you looking for someone?" he asked her.

She turned to looked back at him. "Sorry, I'm being rude," she said, with an apologetic smile.

"No, no, it's fine."

"It's just that I'm looking for my cousin. I haven't seen her all evening, and I've been looking forward to catching up with her, and—"

"Say no more, I completely understand, and I'd hate to be in your way."

She smiled graciously, glad that he seemed to understand. He stepped to his right to allow her to pass, but at the same moment she stepped to her left so that they were still standing directly in front of one another. In an attempt to correct their error, they both stepped in the opposite direction, but again they faced the same dilemma as before. They chuckled awkwardly, trying one more time to move past one another but for the third time they remained in each others way.

"Sorry," she apologized once more. "You go left, and I go right."

"That's the same direction," he reminded her, but he has an amused expression on his face, like he was suppressing a smile.

Elsa flushed red. "Right," she muttered, unable to believe she could make such a stupid mistake. "Then how about we both go right?"

After many hasty apologies and what seemed like an excruciatingly and unnecessarily long time, they finally managed to get around each other.

At last, Elsa finally found Rapunzel. There were lots of hugs (which she was hesitant to initiate, but she found that her powers were less likely to harm someone she had a strong love for, despite those people being the one's she was most afraid of hurting. it was about finding that right balance of being careful but not afraid) and "it's so good to see you"s and happy smiles. Rapunzel thanked her for such a warm welcome and said that the ball was fantastic even though she insisted that Elsa didn't have to go through all that trouble for her. But if her cousin liked it, Elsa was finally satisfied and able to relax, knowing all the stress she had gone through had been worth it.

It was only a matter of time before she had to get dragged away from Rapunzel and her husband Eugene because all good things must come to an end, as one of her staff had informed her that apparently something had gone wrong with the ice sculptures and so she had to attend personally to that. She wasn't very upset; she hadn't expected to get so far into the evening without running into any bumps or hassles, so the fact that there was only a problem arising after this long was almost a relief.

Nevertheless, Elsa slipped past all the guests out to the balcony to be by herself. She leaned upon the ledge, admiring the full moon as the light glittered upon the water. Balls were nice, but they felt like much more trouble than they were really worth. They were more for the benefit of every else than for her own even if she also could enjoy herself. She decided that maybe she would step outside later, much, much later to let off a little steam.

"The host avoiding her own party?" She heard a voice from behind her, and she turned to see Hans standing there.

She turned back to face the view. "Not at all, I'm just..." She struggled for a word that was honest but not too negative. "Overwhelmed, is all."

"If it's any consolation, it's been going really well, but that's no surprise considering the strenuous amount of planning you seemed to have done."

Elsa didn't answer, but she was secretly flattered.

"Queen Elsa?"

She looked back at him again.

"The night is nearly over, and if i may be so bold... I was hoping that I would be able to have this dance?"

She blinked, his question catching her completely off guard. "Pardon?"

"I wanted to ask, you know. Before we ran out of chances." He held out his hand to her.

She shook her head. "Oh, I don't know if that's such a good idea," said Elsa. She still wasn't completely comfortable with physical contact, but she hoped that he didn't take her refusal to heart.

"What are you afraid of?" he asked.

_Nothing. Everything. I don't know._

"I don't bite. I promise," he added. He smiled an easy smile.

"It's not that..." She looked at his hand extended out to her then back up at him.

Hesitantly, she began to reach out to take his hand in her own. In her nervousness, she could feel a chill run through her body as she saw the frost beginning up the balcony: on the ledge, along the doorframe, on the floor. She stopped, retracting her hand. She had been stupid to think that her nerves wouldn't get the best of her.

He knew what she was capable of. He knew what she could do. His unwavering hopeful smile remained. He still seemed to trust her, for whatever reason.

If only she could just relax. She took a deep breath, trying to let herself go. At last, she took his hand in hers.


	4. Snow Queen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This ones pretty short, sorry

Elsa couldn't help but notice the frost building up beneath her feet as it glimmered and shone under the light of the moon. Her heels clicked on the stone pavement as she her distance from the castle drew farther and farther. The frost grew more and more until it was no longer just frost but a thin layer of snow, fresh and white and crunching softly as she tread upon it. Under normal circumstances she would fight to suppress the cold, but at the moment she chose to ignore it.

It was late, much later than when the last party guests had finally said their goodbye's, and Elsa desperately needed to let go of her inhibitions and free herself from her anxieties. She had remained collected and together the entire night—and by extension also the entire time since that fateful day when she finally had ended the storm—and she was having none of it any longer. Tonight would be different.

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and—for once—allowed her magic to flow freely from her fingertips.

She could feel the relief wash over her as all the pent-up energy that had been building inside her was released. Snowflakes swirled all around her conjured out of practically nothing and straight into the air. Structures, patterns, crystals of ice—whatever she could set her mind to—were willed into being simply with a flick of her wrist. They glistened like crystal by the faint light of the stars and the moon. With a sweep of her hand, the ground was covered in thick snow. She allowed her movements to be as free as her thoughts, just letting the flow of her emotions taking her wherever her powers would lead her.

Elsa undid the bun in her hair and allowed it to fall loosely upon her shoulders. She could see her breath starting to form in clouds in front of her as the chill in the air began to grow, but she paid no mind to it. The snow queen was without a care in the world, and any problem that arose, she could always fix later. Right now, she reveled in her solitude, and this time she spent as she stood right outside the castle in the freezing cold was hers and hers alone.

A voice broke her reverie.

"Someone looks like they're having fun."

"Hans!" she cried. Elsa quickly turned around to see him standing behind her. Her heart was pounding. She had been so caught up in the moment, she hadn't even heard him approach, which was surprising considering that she was pretty familiar to the sound of footsteps crunching in the snow.

He smiled apologetically. "Forgive me, am I bothering you?"

She shook her head weakly, still rather flustered, her cheeks flushed with a pink tinge. She silently prayed that it was too dark outside to tell. "No, I... I just didn't expect anybody else to be out here." The boy certainly had a way of sneaking up on her. They ran into each other much too often for it to be simple coincidence.

He toyed with the fabric of his gloves. "Neither did I. But, funny story, I couldn't sleep, so naturally I decided to go outside for a walk through the courtyard. So there I was, minding my own business when I happened to notice a figured with snow white hair rushing from the castle doors. My curiosity got the better of me, I just had to see what you were up to."

"Really?"

"No, I was just hoping I'd get to play around in the snow."

She rolled her eyes. "Are you going to make a habit out of sneaking up on me when I least expect it?" asked Elsa, a twinge of annoyance coming through in her tone even if she was merely jesting with him. "If you keep this up I'm just gonna tell you right now that I'm not responsible for whatever happens to you." It was a fair warning. Probably not the best idea in the world to startle a snow queen.

"Technically, the first time you ran into me."

Alright, she'd give him that one. "Fair enough." Elsa sighed. "By the way, since you were wondering why I'm out here in the first place, I... just needed to unwind a little bit. Tonight's been a long night."

It had all been good fun, but she wouldn't want to do it every night. Something about spending a long period of time with lots of people just drained her of all her energy.

"Oh I'd imagine so, judging by the way you were snoring on my shoulder earlier," he said, referring to their dance on the balcony. Tell me," he pried, "am I really that boring?" He had this twinkle in his eye that was simultaneously infuriating and endearing.

"I was not snoring," she said, aghast. She straightened her posture, trying her best to retain a sense of dignity. Even so, she knew it was true. 

Hans smirked. "If you say so."

Elsa was surprised by his audacity. "Are you sure you want to challenge me on that?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I am honor-bound to speak only the truth to you, no matter how painful that truth may be, your majesty," he replied, but his tone was mocking.

"Keep talking, Westerguard, and you just might find out personally just exactly what I'm capable of," she quipped. Her eye's flashes dangerously, and the chill in the air grew stronger. She could tell that she was getting a little carried away, but she didn't care; she was having too much fun.

"As beautiful and ungodly terrifying as you realizing your full potential would be, I'd prefer you not realize it on me." Hans gave her a somewhat defeated smile. "I don't mean to instigate anything, honest."

She didn't know why, but she was actually a little disappointed. Like she had almost expected him to continue with their little game.

He took a step back from her. "Besides, I'm just gonna get you all riled up again, and you said you wanted to unwind. Just ignore me. I'll be all but invisible. Just go ahead and go back to doing your little frozen thing."

Confused and disappointed, Elsa turned away from him again. She really did try to continue, to get back into the mind set she had been in before, but she couldn't focus anymore. Not with him standing there. That sense of freedom she had felt just a few moments ago was no longer there.

She turned back to him, scowling. "Well, come on then," she said irritably, motioning for him to come nearer. 

"Hm?"

"You said you wanted to play around in the snow," she said, as though it should be completely obvious.

"W-well, yes. But that was a joke, I didn't expect you to take it seriously."

"Well you've officially ruined my 'me' time, so the least you can do is make it up to me by helping me build a snowman."

He gave an amused smile, bowing slightly to her. "As you wish, Your Majesty."

She crossed her arms, still trying to feign annoyance with him, but despite herself she cracked a grin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to add more at the end but changed my mind & am going to probably save what I had written for a later chapter


	5. Goodbyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to just put the rest of it in the next chapter

"You call that a snowman?" mocked Elsa, looking over from where she stood with her snowman over at Hans where he was building his just a few yards away in the snowy field.

"I apologize, not all of us have your skill with ice," he retorted, looking over at her. Her snowman was practically flawless, perfectly proportioned and complete with intricate face details and a pipe and top hat made out of ice.

The snow queen laughed. "Look at the this poor thing; it's completely lopsided!" She gestured to his poor misshapen snowman.

Hans examined his work. It's head was off-center and much too large for its body, one of its eyes much higher than the other. She was right. "Touché."

Turning away from her, he felt the impact of a cold snowball onto the side of his head with a loud smack in his ear. He turned back to Elsa, who seemed intently fixated on building her own snowman, feigning the picture of innocence.

He turned back to his own creation, but as soon as he looked away the same thing happened again and then once more. He heard a giggle. He turned to Elsa again, and she looked as innocent as before. It was no use. She was clearly the culprit; they were the only people outside, not to mention the look on her face was a little too carefully composed.

He quickly grabbed a handful of snow and packed it into a ball, but before he could throw it, a fourth snowball smacked right into his face. He heard the familiar giggle once more, and saw through the snow a brilliant smile being concealed behind a hand as Elsa laughed at him.

Two could play at this game. He raised an eyebrow. "Oh, it's on," he said with a sly grin. In an instant, her expression changed from one of innocence to mischief, eyebrow quirked, lips upturned in a smirk, blue eyes gleaming wickedly. He threw the snowball he had held in his hand, which she dispelled into the air as though it were effortless. She conjured up several more snowballs which were projected towards him all at once. They smacked into him, throwing him off-balance, and with a small rush of panic he fell over, collapsing into the snow.

"Hans?" she asked, sounding concerned. She crept closer to him.

He continued to lay there, waiting for her. At last he saw her face, hovering above his figure laying in the snow, her expression worried. He grinned up at her. "Fancy seeing you here, Your Highness," he said lightly, as if he were surprised to see her standing there. She looked quite pretty with her hair down, its light color reflecting in the light of the moon, a stark contrast against the dark night sky.

She rolled her eyes, all previous concern for him gone in an instant but her lips twitched in a small smile. She offered out a hand to him. He sat up and took it, but before she could help him up, he tugged, pulling her down into the snow beside him. She cried out in surprise, but she refused to let go of him and the two of them tumbled through the snow together, laughing.

Coming to a halt, Elsa pinned him face-up in the snow. She looked down at him, and her lips twisted in a devilish smirk, looking quite satisfied with herself. "I win."

His gaze lingered—on face, her eyes, her lips. It was silly, he knew, but her newfound confidence was endearing, and he'd never seen a triumphant smile quite so attractive in his life. Normally, he wasn't one to back down but defeat from the snow queen he absolutely did not mind, even in such a small victory as this. However, as the time they spent laying in silence in the snow grew longer and longer, Hans realized the cold was starting to get to him, his clothes soaking up the water from the snow. Finally, he said to her with a smile, "You know, some of us are only able to sit in the snow for so long without dying of hypothermia."

Her eyes grew wide as the realization dawned on her. "S-sorry," she stammered with a sheepish grin. "I can—"

Before she could finish her sentence, Hans leaned upward, pressing a kiss to her cheek. It was much colder than he thought it would be.

Elsa froze. Her smile faded. She blinked, her eyes widening in shock and disbelief, all of a sudden painfully aware of their close proximity. The place where his lips had touched her cheek burned.

"My apologies, Your Highness." He knew it was stupid. He knew he was way out of his depth, and that he'd probably scared her away. He tried to reason with himself that it was done out of strategy and not mere impulsiveness and desire, but he knew that wasn't true. Despite his idiocy, he wasn't sorry.

Elsa felt her face grow hot and her hands go cold. "No it's... fine." She rolled over to lay down in the snow beside him, completely awed and perplexed, too distracted to be bothered by the cold, not that it normally bothered her in the first place. She was acutely aware of the pounding of her own heart. Things definitely were not fine, but whether that meant they were better or worse than just fine she had no idea. The two of them watched the night sky in silence, their breath was visible in the chilly night air.

When she couldn't take it any longer, she sat up, scrambling to her feet. "We should probably head back to the castle," she said, clutching her arms close to her body. The frost began to build up again beneath her feet, the snow solidifying into smooth ice.

Hans stood up as well, hair dripping slightly and clothes wet from the snow. "Yes, that's probably good thinking." Elsa may have been immune to the cold, but he certainly wasn't, no matter how frozen his heart may have been.

She smiled apologetically, trying to put on a polite face. "Sorry," she said, waving her hand and doing her best to dispel the water from his figure. To his surprise, the water was coerced from his clothing, leaving him nearly completely dry. The water transformed into crystals of ice and then with another wave of her hand disappeared into the air. It was a neat little trick.

"Not bad," he said, nodding appreciatively, looking down at his uniform which looked almost good as new. "Almost like it never happened."

"Yeah. Almost."

Almost like none of it ever happened at all.

—

"Elsa, it's nearly 11, are you going to get up anytime soon?" said Anna from her sister's bedside, giving her older sibling a good shake.

"Nooooo," she grumbled, still half asleep, covering her head with a pillow. She'd been up way too long the night before, a mistake she would not be making again. Usually she was up before Anna, but the ball had just drained her of all energy. She liked sleeping in just as much as her sister, but she felt like as the responsible older sibling who was in charge of an entire kingdom, she should be early to rise. Just not today.

Anna shook her again, but she ignored her. "Elsa, come on. When the sky's awake, we're awake." She felt a heavy weight upon her back, pressing her into the mattress, and she groaned, sure that Anna had taken it upon herself to lay on top of her older sister.

"Anna," she complained, her voice muffled by the mattress. "Get off of me."

"Not until you wake up."

"I'm awake, ok?" said Elsa although she didn't move. "Aren't you getting a little old for this?"

She didn't mind her sister picking up her old habits from where the two of them had left off years ago, but she had figured resorting to such childish measures was a thing of the past. Clearly, she had been mistaken.

"Nope."

Her head was pounding. She groaned, grabbing a nearby pillow and hitting Anna in the head with it, which Anna responded to with a loud "Oof!"

"Alright, fine," said Anna, getting off Elsa & standing back up. Elsa herself sat up, eyes still half-closed in her sleepy state, dangling her feet off the edge of her bed. She yawned, stretching her arms.

"Aw, Sleeping Beauty is finally up?" said Anna.

"Oh, shut up," she said, still mid-yawn. She wasn't in the mood to argue, but it was also much too early for to be completely agreeable.

"Why so tired?" Anna turned away from Elsa to examine herself in her older sister's mirror by the beside table.

 _Damnit._ "Last night was a long night," said Elsa. At least it wasn't a lie.

"Yeah I can tell, from how heavily you were snoring," she said, smirking.

Elsa frowned, furrowing her brow. "Do I really snore?" This had been the second mention of snoring in 24 hours; she was starting to get worried.

Anna ignored this. She turned to look at Elsa, examining her disheveled appearance. "Those are some pretty dark shadow's you got under your eyes."

Elsa groaned again in response. "Great."

Anna turned back to face her reflection in the mirror, fixing her bangs. "Anyways, you might wanna get ready. Hans' ship is being loaded. He's leaving this morning."

Her words hit her like a ton of bricks. "What?" she asked with wide eyes, at last fully alert. In her peripheral vision she could see the barest traces of ice beginning creeping up the windowpanes of her room as the temperature of the room dropped, and even she was surprised at her own strong reaction. She clutched her hands, wringing them together and with a good conscious effort, the ice stopped.

Upon seeing Elsa's reaction, Anna raised her eyebrows, looking over at her older sister again with a quizzical look. "What, he didn't tell you?"

She didn't say anything, just sat there in stunned silence until at last she realized Anna was watching her intently, waiting expectantly for a response. Slowly, Elsa shook her head. "No... He did not."

—

"Are you sure you don't want to stay a little longer?" Anna asked Hans. She had asked him the same thing about a million times that morning, but she asked one more time just to be sure as they stood on the dock of Arandelle's port together to say their last goodbye's for his departure.

"Yes, yes," said Hans with a polite smile and a small laugh. "As much as I've enjoyed my stay here, I think it's about time that I head home."

Elsa privately found it amazing how he had been able to resist Anna's best pleading puppy-dog eyes.

"Promise you'll come back to visit, ok?"

Strange words, rarely uttered to anybody's ex-fiancé but Elsa supposed that an ex-fiancé they were on such good terms with was an exception.

"Cross my heart. Don't worry, I'll be back before you know it," he said, smiling at her reassuringly.

Ok, so he'd clearly been reeled in by the puppy eyes more than he'd previously let on.

Anna hugged him, a motion which he reciprocated affectionately. "You're welcome here any time," she said.

"Thank you so much." He let go of Anna and turned to face Elsa, who was standing quietly a just a few feet behind her.

Hans approached her so that he stood directly before her. He bowed. "Thank you for your hospitality."

She merely nodded in return. "It's been really wonderful having you here," she said, and she was being honest, even after the previous nights events. She couldn't bring herself to look him in the eye.

"I wouldn't want to prolong my stay any longer; I would just be hindrance. I'm sure my family misses me." He laughed as if he had just told a good joke. "All the same," he said, this time sounding much more solemn, "I will be very sorry to leave you."

Steeling herself to look up at him, she saw that in his green eyes was a glimpse of earnestness. She wasn't sure what to make of it. "Well, I... We're... sorry to see you go," she replied, quickly correcting herself. "We wish you a safe journey home." She tried her best to smile.

_Conceal. Don't feel. Don't let him know._

"Thank you." He held a gloved hand out to her. Warily, she took it, her eyes meeting his. Carefully, so carefully, he brought her hand up to his lips and kissed it. She could feel her cheeks grow warm, but despite this the rest of her went cold as it always did when she was nervous. His gaze lingered upon hers, and she prayed for her powers not to act up at this point in time.

Hans didn't seem to notice her iciness, or if he did, he didn't care. He took a step back from her, his smile easy as he looked at both Elsa and Anna. "I'll write to you as soon as I get back, ok?" He said, addressing the both of them, but his eyes were locked on her.

"Please do!" said Anna, at last speaking up again. She'd been watching the pair of them with a curious expression. For once, Elsa was glad for her intervention.

Elsa said nothing. She couldn't.

"Don't miss me too much, alright?" he said jokingly. He gave an bright smile and a small wave as he boarded his ship, a wave which Anna returned.

Anna watched as the ship sailed away and disappeared beyond the horizon, but Elsa had disappeared from the dock before the ship had even left the port.

—

"Cheer up, Elsa. He'll be back soon," said Anna. The pair of them sat in one of the castle's many large rooms: Elsa resting in an armchair, Anna splayed across the couch.

Elsa hadn't spoken since the departure; she just sat there in silence. Occasionally, she would absentmindedly flick her wrist or twirl her fingers, conjuring up a snowflake into the air. Every time it would vanish nearly as quickly as it appeared. She had been in lost in thought, but upon hearing Anna's words, Elsa lifted her head to look up at her, waking from her stupor. "Hm? Oh, I know." She sighed. "Why does it matter, anyways," she said, feeling as though it were necessary to add.

"You seemed to be enjoying his company." Anna gave her a look that seemed to say "you know it matters".

Elsa nodded, but continued to play with her powers, swirling around the snowflakes absentmindedly. "He's very nice. I doubt there's a person who wouldn't enjoy his company." She was careful with her choice of words. If she was being completely honest, she could almost see why Anna had been so quick to be swept off her feet. Almost.

"You know what I mean."

"Anna." She sighed, closing her eyes and the magic dissipated into thin air. "I have more things to trouble me than the affections of one prince." It was definitely true; if only she could convince herself of the same thing. Why were her thoughts so preoccupied by green eyes and easy smiles and shared laughter and the way being with him almost felt like second-nature?

"But it's Hans, that's different."

"You seem awfully intent on fixing me up with someone you were completely convinced was your soulmate not long ago," Elsa snapped, her short temper getting the better of her. She felt a twinge of guilt; she hated arguing with her sister, but it was too late to take the comment back.

Anna ignored it anyhow, brushing off her sister's coldness as though it were nothing. "You should write to him. I think you'd both like that."

Elsa stood up abruptly. "I'll not be discussing this with you again. I have work to do." She strode from the room and into the hall. Even if she had just said it to get Anna off her back, there was some truth to her words. There was always work to be done. Always.

"You know, you really shouldn't run away from your problems!" Anna called after her.

Elsa stopped in her tracks, hesitating for a moment. Was that really all she was doing? Running away from her problems once again, like a flighty irresponsible little girl? Well, he'd been the first to go. The moment was over, all previous hesitation gone. She closed her eyes and took a deep shuddering breath. "Watch me." She strode off without another word.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry, he'll be back. I'm not rushing things am I?


	6. No Take Backsies

"Hey Elsa, guess what?"

Elsa looked up from her papers to see Anna standing in front of her desk. She sighed. "Anna, please. I'm busy."

Under normal circumstances, she'd have been quite pleased to see her sister—work was a drag, and Anna was one of the few things that could alleviate her worries—but she really did wish to get this done. Surely there could be time for whatever Anna wished to say later.

"You always say that," complained the younger girl. "'Later, Anna'," she said, changing her voice to mimic her older sister's. "'I'm busy, Anna'. 'I promise I will, Anna, I just have to take care of this first.'"

She folded her arms crossly. "First of all, I do not sound like that. And second of all," she said, trying to return her focus back to the papers in her hands. "I wouldn't say those things if they weren't true."

She really wished she didn't have to turn down her sister as often as she did, but all her responsibilities did have a nasty habit of piling up, sometimes making leisure time nearly impossible. She didn't want Anna to have this negative image of herself in her head, that she was just as closed off and seemingly uninterested in her life as she had been before, or that now that she was an adult she was no fun either. 

"Elsa, it's important," she said, jumping up at down impatiently, her red braids flopping around as she did so.

She looked back at Anna abruptly. "You didn't break anything, did you?" she asked sharply, giving her sister a suspicious look. It wouldn't have been the first time. 

"What? No, Elsa listen to me." She brandished a piece of paper in front of Elsa's face. "Guess who's letter just arrived?"

She couldn't tell, for the paper was held right under her nose and she couldn't focus her eyes on the writing. Elsa squinted, scrutinizing the letter more closely. "Anna, It's addressed to you."

Anna ignored this. She coughed, clearing her throat. "'Dear Anna'," she began, reading straight from the letter. "That's me," she added.

Elsa rolled her eyes, but listened intently nonetheless, folding her hands together and resting her head upon them.

"'Sorry this took so long, but I've been awfully sidetracked ever since I got home. Apparently in my absence, a lot has happened, so of course there's been a lot of catching up to do. I wish I had more time to write, but there always seems to be so many other things going on that I simply don't have the time. The weather here will definitely take some getting used to for me. How've you been? I feel bad leaving my best girl on such a short notice, but I was getting homesick. While I'm on the subject of home, I feel it necessary to inform you that I received a total of five and a half "welcome backs" from my family when I got back. Don't ask about the half. Anyways, I'm fairly certain that is probably an new record. Maybe I should leave home more often. Ok, that was a joke, but maybe I really should.'" Anna frowned, perusing over the letter. "Boring small talk," she muttered. "More boring small talk."

"I was under the impression that you had already read this," said Elsa, but nevertheless she was slightly amused.

"I have, that's why I'm skipping over all this. Aha!" she cried triumphantly, at last finding the passage she had been searching for. She put on her reading voice once more. "'Tell your sister I said hello. I look forward to seeing both you and her again although at the moment I'm not quite sure when that will be. Lots of love, Hans.'"

For a moment, Anna caught Elsa's eyes widening before she turned her gaze back down to her desk. "Well that was nice of him," she said pleasantly, as if to casually brush off her sister's statement. "If you write back, tell him I send my salutations as well." She tried to appear completely calm, but inside it was the complete opposite. Who knew the effect a simple "hello" could have upon her emotional state? That was it? A kiss on the cheek last time they were together and all she gets is a lousy "hello"?

"'That was nice of him'?" said Anna, giving her sister a look as though she couldn't believe her ears.

"It's your letter. Anyways, I am pleased. You two seem thick as thieves; it would be a shame to fall out of touch." The fact that their broken engagement had not deterred their friendship would never fail to astound her.

"You don't seem all that pleased."

"Let me revel in my excitement my way, and you can revel in the excitement your way," she said, trying to go back to her papers like it was nothing.

"Fine," said Anna, turning to leave. "Then I guess you don't want to read the one addressed to you as well."

Elsa froze. "What?"

No matter how blasé she tried to appear, she couldn't help but be drawn in with those words.

Anna paused, and Elsa saw that to her dismay when she turned back to face her, she had a smug smile on her face. She held out a second piece of paper, this one addressed to Elsa. "That caught your attention."

Eyes wide, Elsa attempted to snatch the letter from her younger sister, but Anna held it out of her reach.

"Anna, give it!" she hissed, getting up from her seat and leaning over her desk to try and reach, her cool facade finally starting to crack.

Anna snickered. "And I had been wondering why you had been so tired the morning after the ball."

The color drained from her face. "You didn't."

"Oh I did."

"You realize that's a crime to open up mail addressed to someone else, don't you? Particularly if said person is the queen of Arandelle." She hated to stoop so low, but at this point she was desperate and frustrated.

"Empty threats aren't going to make me unsee the letter."

At this, Elsa practically crawled over the desk to get to the letter, a reaction which seemed to amuse Anna greatly. "Give it to me!"

Anna shrieked as Elsa all but tackled her in an attempt to get the piece of paper in her hands. "Not unless you promise to build a snowman with me later!" yelled Anna, Elsa, wrestling in her head with the temptation to use her powers as well as physically with her sister to attain the letter which was being held just out of her reach.

"Anna!" she whined, feeling pathetic and childish but also wishing to defeat her sister, not giving up on her resolve for a single second.

"Promise!" Anna saw her sister raise her hand, and she felt air dropping in temperature. "Don't do it, or you'll ruin the paper!"

Elsa hesitated, and Anna took advantage of this brief hesitation to pry herself from her sisters grasp. She hadn't gone two steps when she saw something white pass her, narrowly missing her left ear and hitting the door, freezing it shut.

"You almost hit me!" cried Anna indignantly.

"But I didn't." Elsa's aim had actually been very careful not to hit her sister. Using her magic directly on Anna was something she still was not comfortable with. The accusation actually stung a lot more than she was letting on.

Anna did the only thing she could think of: she grabbed onto Elsa's leg and clung for dear life.

"Anna, what are you—"

"I won't let go unless you promise to build a snowman with me later."

She tried to pry her sister off, but it was no use. She shook her leg, nearly falling over. When that didn't work, she tried to walk back to her desk regardless, but Anna was too heavy. At this point she was ready to give up.

"Anna don't be ridiculous. Just let me—"

"Promise."

She sighed, exasperated. "Fine."

"And that you'll have an ice skating day later this week," added Anna.

"Don't push it."

"Please?"

"Alright! Now will you please let go of me?"

Anna let go of Elsa's leg, shuffling away and holding out the letter to her older sister from where she sat on the floor.

Elsa took it, unfreezing the door with a wave of her hand. She examined the letter, turning it over in her hand, and something seemed off. "The seal isn't even broken," she said, puzzled.

"Oh, yeah," said Anna, standing up and adjusting her rumpled clothing and now disheveled hair. "You didn't think I actually would read the letter, did you?"

It didn't make any sense. "But you said—"

She rolled her eyes. "I made that up. Although your reaction was kinda suspicious don't you think? Not hiding anything, are you?"

Anna could see Elsa flush bright red, the color reaching all the way to her ears. Embarrassment quickly turned to rage, so before Elsa could say or do anything, Anna rushed out the door hurriedly calling back to her older sister, "Anyways, you promised, ok, so no take backsies!"

For a moment, Elsa just stood there, stunned. At last, resigned to the fact that she had been fooled by her little sister, she let out a huge sigh and opened the letter that so much sweat and tears had gone into fighting over. There were worse things you could be tricked into than building a snowman.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll probably say what's in the letter next chapter, so don't be too disappointed.


	7. Letters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow my longest chapter. If the way the letters are written gets confusing, it may be because sometimes the paragraphs are direct responses to the previous letter, if that makes any sense?
> 
> Sorry, the initial letter isn't really all that exciting, at least not enough to be fussed over. That's sort of the joke.

Queen Elsa of Arandelle,

Thank you for wishing me a safe journey home. I am happy to announce that I have arrived home fully intact. I don't suppose I could apologize enough for such an impromptu departure. While I was quite enjoying my stay, I found myself in a conundrum in that I was quite homesick and had to return back home. Leaving on holiday is always quite nice, but you always must be brought back down to reality when you accept the fact that it is just that, a holiday. I don't think anybody, myself included, expected my stay to be as long as it was (its probably a good thing I tend to overpack). I had a thoroughly good time in Arandelle although I think part of it can be chalked up to the company being so great. Both you and Anna have been wonderful hosts; it was just the fact that I was beginning to feel like the party guest who simply won't leave.

I hope that you and your sister are happy at the moment. Anna is quite the ball of energy. Usually I can keep up, I just don't know how you can handle it 24/7. Not that it's annoying since as the youngest of thirteen, I understand where she's coming from. I actually adore your younger sister, and although we have not been aquatinted for very long, I am beginning to regard her as my own. I've never had a sister. I kind of like it. At the very least, becoming practically siblings after a few weeks is better than becoming betrothed after one evening, right? What an odd change in relationship...

Let's face it; I sometimes tend to rush into things... I really must apologize for that. That and every moment after. I would love to come back to Arandelle sometime, but only if Arandelle will have me, of course.

Sincerely,

Hans Westerguard

\--

_Prince Hans,_

_Thank you so much for the letter. I'm so glad to hear that you are alright. I'm not particularly fond of travel by ship. I try to avoid it if I can help it—makes me anxious. Also, don't ever worry about feeling like you are overstaying your welcome; we are always happy to have you._

_Anna and I are both doing well. She was very excited to have received your letter. On the topic of her being a ball of energy: you have no idea. One sibling is a handful; I can't imagine having twelve. You don't want to know what I had to go through to in order to receive your letter from her. She can be so silly sometimes. You two seem to get along so well. Is it never awkward? She always seems to have so much fun when she's with you. Maybe I'm jealous... I've just been so busy lately that I haven't been able to spend as much time with her as I would like._

_And I agree; you do rush into things. All the same, Arandelle would love to have you back. Honestly, you're welcome any time._

_Many thanks,_

_Queen Elsa of Arandelle_

\--

Queen Elsa,

If it troubles you at all, I don't think you have to worry about me getting shipwrecked. I spent a few years in the Southern Isles' Navy; I think I know what I'm doing. Although I'm sure you have more pressing matters on your mind than myself.

Addressing the question about whether it is ever awkward between me and Anna: is it strange that the answer is not really? It's because we both have red hair; we have a redhead connection.

Ok, but in all serious, maybe it was at first, but if truth be told there wasn't a lot of investment in the relationship—at least, not in the romantic sense. Anna doesn't need me. If she's happy, really that's good enough for me. I know my girl, she'll survive. I don't think Anna is too broken up about it. Although, oddly enough, neither am I. While I was devastated when I could not unfreeze her heart, I was fine once I knew she would be alright. Any heartache i felt was brief. I love your sister, and yet my heart is not broken. Do you think me wicked?

I wouldn't worry too much about neglecting time with Anna. You just have a lot on your plate right now. I'm sure she understands. At least she does want to spend time with you.

Best regards,

Hans Westerguard

\--

_Dear Prince Hans,_

_Oh god no, don't tell me that. The thought of someone out at sea for so long makes me nervous just thinking about it. Although you really must tell me more about your being in the navy sometime. Now that I know this little bit of information, I expect to hear all about any sort of crazy adventures you got into._

_And yes, I'm absolutely sure that's why you two are such pals. The bond between redheads is stronger than any blood relation could hope to be I am sure._

_I don't think you are a bad person for not being heartbroken over Anna. You really only did know each other for maybe a day. I know you care about her._

_Also, telling me not to worry is like telling me not to breathe. It's what I do best. I'm trying to work on that. It's not good for the weather here. It's just that I've spent so long shutting her out. I don't want her to think I'm still pushing her away. If I could drop all my duties and make up every single second of lost time, I would._

_Sincerely,_

_Queen Elsa_

\--

Dear Queen Elsa,

Oh yes, I will be sure to regale you with tales of my many escapades at sea. Although I'm not sure if I'd be able to properly convey everything in letter form. Would you prefer just the exciting parts, or would you rather hear all the gaudy details?

The bond between two redheads is so much stronger than blood.

Also it wasn't only a day. It was more like... three days.

I know that saying "just stop worrying" is all but useless advice, but honestly, stop tip-toeing. You need to strut. Who doesn't love a good snow day? I'm not saying you should neglect your duties, but it would do you some good to let go once in a while.

Sincerely,

Hans Westerguard

P.S. I think by now Anna understands what your intentions were in seclusion all these years. I don't think she will further misinterpret your motives in what you do. If I were her, I would be grateful to have an older sibling who cared about me so much.

\--

_Dear Prince Hans,_

_I would like to hear everything. And by everything, I do mean everything._

_It wasn't three days. Of those three days you were ~~not~~ betrothed, you were actually together for only a single evening. Therefore, those other days don't count._

_I'm trying not to be so high-strung, I really am. It's just been a part of me for so long, its rather difficult to let that part of me go. The part of me that always fears that something will go wrong. I'm getting better at it though._

_Sincerely,_

_Queen Elsa_

_P.S. Thank you. I really do care about Anna very much. I think your brothers care about you too, even if you don't see it._

\--

Dear Queen Elsa,

When I come back, then. I promise. 

I suppose we will just have to agree to disagree on that.

I don't think you are high-strung. Ok, maybe you are, a little. But in a good way  
Sincerely,

Hans Westerguard

P.S. What my brothers constitute as care is a little unorthodox, unless all twelve of my brothers are trying to keep me safe from ice powers by distancing themselves from me.

\--

_Dear Hans,_

_Sorry for such a late reply. I just have had about a million things I have needed to get done lately. Along the same lines, I have a confession to make: I snapped and got a new pair of gloves. They are currently sitting next to me on the windowsill. I couldn't take it; I've been under so much pressure. If I feel like I am having trouble controlling my powers, I put them on. I don't like when I can see the ice creeping up the window panes. Usually once I calm down, the ice will just go away, but lately I have not been able to get rid of it. It's even worse when ice forms on anything I touch._

_Please don't tell Anna if you two are still writing. I have a feeling she would be disappointed in me if she knew. I don't want her to be disappointed._

_I know I should get rid of the gloves if I want to make any progress harnessing my powers, but they make me feel a little bit more secure. I'll get rid of them... eventually._

_Sincerely,_

_Elsa_

_P.S. Sorry for being such a downer._

\--

Dear Queen Elsa,

I won't say anything to Anna. You have my word. Although I do think you should tell her, but on your own time. I do not see it as my position to tell you what to do, but I also feel like you should get rid of the gloves. Don't worry, I am not going to lecture you, those are just my thoughts.

How about a deal? If you get rid of your gloves, I'll get rid of mine too. Although I am not quite sure how you would benefit from this, but I already wrote it down so it is too late to take back now.

Don't feel bad about being a downer in your letter. I would much prefer you be honest with me than try to spare me by telling me only the nice things. I don't want to get the idea that you are happy when you are not. If I could be there personally to cheer you up, I would. Although I do not know if you would really want another distraction.

I would send flowers, but I have my doubts on their ability to withstand the journey fully intact. Instead, to make up for a lack of my own tales of my life at sea—which you will hear eventually, I swear to you—I'm enclosing a copy of my favorite book. I wasn't sure whether you had the book in your own castle library (which was very impressive I will admit), so I am letting you have my own personal copy as a gift. Sorry about the condition, but hopefully you will find it as enjoyable as I do. It's not much, but maybe it will be a good distraction since you're so overwhelmed with your queenly duties.

Take care,

Hans

\--

_Dear Hans,_

_Thank you so much for gift. If I could hug you, I would. I am happy to announce that I enjoyed it very much. I will admit shamefully that I finished it in less than a day. You don't need to apologize about the condition; I can see why it is so loved (although I did not see that twist coming. I thought he was dead!). I only have one small critique. I kept expecting there to be pirates, and it kept alluding to pirate-related things, but there were never any pirates. You cannot allude to pirates and then not deliver any pirates! There has to be some sort of rule against that._

_I think I am feeling much better now. My schedule is not quite as busy as it was before, so I can relax a little bit. Since I've been able to keep control of my anxiety a little better, I've gotten a better grasp with my powers. Yesterday was an ice skating day, since I promised Anna I would have one. Anna was so happy. You should have seen her. Time with her has been a lot more scarce than I had ever anticipated after the whole "becoming ruler of an entire country" thing._

_Thank you so much,_

_Elsa_

_P.S. On the subject of your gloves. Why do you wear those anyways?_

\--

Dear Elsa,

I am pleased to hear that you are feeling better. Sorry to disappoint on the book; if it is any consolation, I too feel that there is a significant lack of pirates in the novel. I actually grew up with that story (being the youngest of 13 children I had to find some way to entertain myself), so I am glad that you enjoyed it.

Also, I'm trying to envision Anna skating gracefully upon the ice, but I just can't see it. "Anna" and "graceful" simply don't go together. Ice skating does sound fun, however. Much better than anything happening here. Or more accurately, anything not happening here. You would think a home with thirteen siblings would be more eventful. Not that I wish you any unhappiness, but I have been absolutely bored out of my mind lately, so I'm hoping the time I have spent away from Arandelle has been exceptionally tedious without me because I have missed it there far too much, and I need a good excuse to come back. However, there is actually one thing I still want to discuss with my father before I intend to visit Arandelle. I will let you know what it is if it goes well, but I would like to tell you in person if that is alright?

Sincerely yours,

Hans

P.S. I actually have fire powers. Surprise?

P.P.S. Kidding, I just dislike dirt.

\--

_Dear Hans,_

_Please do come if you can. In fact, we are anticipating your arrival so much that we will greet you personally at the harbor. There will be trumpets, flowers, an announcer, we'll bust out the chocolate fondue, ice sculptures in your honor, the royal guard will be there, you know, the works._

_But In all honesty, we would love to have you. I am not saying that we miss you, but we may miss you. I think Anna would be very happy to see you again. Are you still writing her? She has not bothered to tell me._

_Hurry back,_

_Elsa_

_P.S. I agree; how can a home with 13 siblings possibly be boring? You really must introduce me to your brothers sometime. They surely cannot be as bad as you make them out to be._

\--

Dear Elsa,

I am disappointed. I have never gotten a real royal welcoming before. I cannot believe you got my hopes up for nothing. Although just as a personal request, can you actually do the chocolate fondue?

To answer your question: no I am not writing Anna anymore, just you. I think she may have just forgotten to reply to my last letter. She's a lot slower to reply than you are.

Also, you do not want to meet my brothers. Just trust me on this one. You are right though, they are not as bad as I make them out to be.

Sincerely yours,

Hans

\--

Hans,

~~_I realize that by the time you receive this it will be much later than when I write this, but I felt the need to write this anyways. I do not know what time of day you will receive this, but I just wanted to try to share this experience with you._ ~~

_This morning I woke up, and I realized it was still dark. Rather than going back to sleep, I decided to step outside, so I climbed out onto the balcony.Thinking about it later, I don't know why I did it. The only reason I can think of would be because I was waiting for something to happen, only that does not make sense because I had no idea what I was waiting for._

_Anyways, I sat outside the castle and watched the night sky. The stars faded away as time went by and the sky gradually became less blue. And the sun came up, and I wish I could describe to you the colors. The oranges, reds, golds, even silver; the sky kept changing, the colors blurring together as the sun rose up slowly from the horizon. It was absolutely gorgeous._

_I considered telling Anna about what I saw, all the colors in the sunrise, but I didn't know how. Even now I am having trouble articulating it clearly to you. Really, the only way to experience it would just be to see it for yourself. I've never seen the sun rise before; for some reason it reminded me of you._

_I hope the sunrise is as beautiful in the Southern Isles as it is here because this coming from someone who has built entire castles from ice, and I have never seen anything quite like it in my entire life._

_Lots of love,_

_Elsa_

\--

Elsa,

I took your advice and woke up early today to watch the sun rise. You were absolutely right. It was breathtaking. I can understand why you would not know exactly how to share this with Anna. Thank you for sharing it with me. However, I am curious. The balcony you stood on; by any chance was that the one where you froze the door? You know, the one where we danced. Because if so, that may explain why you felt the need to write me about the sunrise. And I am so glad that you did.

You said that you hope the sunrise is as beautiful from the Southern Isles as it is in Arandelle? Don't worry. It is. It absolutely is.

Yours truly,

Hans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what do you think Hans' favorite book is? Just take a wild guess (if its not clear from the other chapters and what a completely derivative hack I am)


	8. Arguments

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long, I know I usually update on the weekend but I've been so busy what with school ending soon. Anyways here it is!

"Wait, Hans is coming back, and you didn't tell me?" said Anna incredulously.

Elsa nodded, not looking up from her book. It was the morning, and the two of them were in Elsa's room. Elsa was sitting in bed reading, paying little mind to Anna who was sitting by the windowsill, fiddling with the curtain. Upon hearing this news, Anna sat straight up, staring at her older sister in disbelief, as though she couldn't believe such a betrayal her own flesh and blood.

"And you didn't think it was kind of important to keep me in the know?"

"I was going to tell you, but it wasn't confirmed for certain until his last letter." She was supposed to be getting dressed, but she didn't want to set the book down just yet. It was almost to her favorite part.

"Why are you reading that thing again?" asked Anna, giving her sister a derisive look. "You never put it down."

"It's good."

"Isn't that like your fifth time reading it?"

"Fourth, actually."

"But that's the point. Why would you already read something where you already know what's going to happen?"

Elsa didn't answer. Anna huffed in annoyance, sitting back and continuing to fiddle with the curtains.

"What are in those things, anyways?" asked Anna, raising an eyebrow skeptically.

"Hm?" she asked, unaware of what Anna was talking about. She concentrated hard on the page in front of her, trying to focus on the words.

"The letters," clarified Anna. "Every time a letter arrives, you're smiling like an idiot for about three days after."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Now she was almost certain this had been at least the third time reading over the same paragraph.

"Oh, don't play dumb."

Elsa sighed in resignation, snapping the book shut and getting out of bed. If she couldn't read, she might as well get ready. She yawned, stretching and sitting in front of the large mirror by the side of her bed. She grabbed the brush off the bedside table and began brushing through her long silvery blonde hair.

"Come on, give me some details."

She could hear her sister's voice distantly in her head, but her mind had begun to wander off despite herself—to a marble balcony, a slow tune, a snowball fight, a sunrise, a burning kiss on the cheek.

"Hello?" Anna hopped off her seat by the windowsill, moving to stand behind Elsa. "Are you even listening?"

"Sorry?" she asked, blinking, her reverie broken, looking in the reflection to see her sister standing behind her with an annoyed expression on her face, arms crossed.

"Nevermind." Anna flopped onto the bed in frustration. "Your mind is somewhere else today."

Elsa shrugged again as she set the brush down and worked at braiding her hair. She hummed quietly. When she had finished, she tied her hair back with a blue ribbon. She got up, going through her wardrobe and pulling out her familiar blue dress. She quickly slipped out of her nightgown and into her outfit. Anna, who was still laying on Elsa's bed, staring at the ceiling and clicking her tongue in impatience and boredom, paid her no mind.

Elsa turned back to the mirror, fixing her hair once more, styling it in a braid just as she nearly always did. She turned back to face Anna. "Come on. Get up now," she said to her sister

Anna groaned in response.

"I have to attend a meeting with some foreign dignitaries in an hour, so you'll have to do without me this morning," she said, ignoring her sister's agitation as she tied a blue ribbon at the end of her braid's tail. She hoped Anna would understand. 

Anna rolled over on the bed, face downward, her voice muffled by the comforter. "Then what's the point in getting up?" Elsa could barely make out what she was saying, but she got the gist of it.

"But with luck, I'll be free tomorrow," she offered, hoping this would be some solace to her baby sister.

Anna groaned again.

Ok, so clearly it wasn't. She tried to reason with her. "If you don't complain, and if you allow me to finish everything by today, then maybe we can have another skating day tomorrow. And—" she added, "maybe if I finish early we can even build a snowman later."

The reaction was immediate. Anna sat up immediately, bright-eyed. "Well, why didn't you say so?" She slid herself off the bed.

Elsa giggled upon seeing her sister's rapid shift in mood. "Although I would appreciate it if you would come down to breakfast with me. Like I said, the meeting isn't for an hour."

Anna smiled.

—

"So when's he coming?"

"Who?"

"Hans!" said Anna impatiently. She looked over from where she stood, building her snowman, over at Elsa who was busy building her own. Elsa's was obviously much better crafted than Anna's, but it was the principle that really mattered, not so much the actual results.

"Oh..." The subject had managed to already slip Elsa's mind, given it was hours after the early morning events. She wasn't especially enthusiastic about this revival of the earlier conversation topic. "He said he would be leaving approximately two weeks after he sent the letter."

"And when is that?"

"I received the letter last Tuesday," she replied curtly. "Today is Sunday, plus add in the time it took for the letter to travel. You do the math."

"You're telling me that you received the letter on Tuesday, and you didn't tell me this until now?" She was astounded.

Elsa could practically hear the betrayal in Anna's voice. She shrugged, as if the details of her sister's ex-fiancé's arrival was of little importance to her. With a flourish of her hand, her snowman now had a set of intricately detailed eyes.

"You seem awfully ambivalent for someone who's been writing back and forth with him all summer."

Elsa shrugged again, not meeting Anna's eyes. She wasn't keen on going into a discussion about Prince Hans with her younger sister. It was true that they had been writing for some time now, but why did that have to mean she should be bouncing off the walls in excitement? Another wave of her hand. Now the snowman had a nose.

"Oh please, you know you're looking forward to seeing him again just as much as I am."

Elsa continued to ignore her sister, making a careful point not to answer her. Her snowman's face was looking a little lopsided, one side of its mouth much higher than the other. She quickly rectified that.

"You're in denial, that's what you are."

"Excuse me?" She stopped fiddling with her snowman, looking over at Anna in disbelief.

"Just admit it already."

"I don't see what there is to admit," she answered coldly.

Anne gave her a skeptical look. "Right," she scoffed.

"Anna, please," said Elsa, feeling burnt out. "Can we not do this now?"

"Well why not?"

She sighed, not having the energy nor being in the mood to explain herself. "Anna..." she began, but before she could continue, Anna, clearly tired of being chastised, spoke up again.

"Why do you always have to hide everything from me? You're so secretive."

"I don't think I'm hiding anything!" she snapped, but Anna's words stung like a freshly opened wound. She thought that she was ready to share anything with her sister, but probing into this particular subject always felt far too invasive. Her snowman began to freeze over, beginning from where her hand was still placed upon it, ice spreading farther and farther across the surface. Startled by this, Elsa removed her hand, but the cold spread until the entire figure was solid ice and then continued creeping slowly, spreading to the snow directly beneath her feet.

Panic rushed through her, and she tried her best to contain the cold, but it only succeeded in fueling the fire. No. She was better than this. _Think happy thoughts._ She shut her eyes, trying to concentrate. _Think happy thoughts._ She shivered.

"Elsa?"

 _Happy thoughts. Focus on happy thoughts._ Sled rides. Warm hugs. Building snowmen late into the night. But definitely not the thought of the events that had occurred in the very same room so many years ago. Not the years she had spent in solitude. And definitely not sunsets, balconies, or the memory of a slow melody and a feeling of a hand in hers.

She could practically feel the soft snow icing over as it lay upon the floor of the vast castle room, as if it were a part of her.

 _Just protect Anna. Stop the ice, protect Anna._ If she couldn't stop it herself, there must be some other way to keep it from spreading.

The gloves. They were sitting on the corner of her beside table. If she could only get to them.

She bolted for the door and down the hallways into her room, Anna hot on her trail. With every step she took, there was new ice under her feet.

"Elsa!" she called after her, but Elsa didn't stop until she had snatched the gloves over the table and put them on. She could feel the gloves literally smothering her magic abilities. The ice had ceased its slow crawl down the hallways and along the walls, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh." Anna had caught sight of the gloves, and the disapproving tone in her voice was apparent, as well was what Elsa could have sworn was some disappointment. "I thought you had gotten ride of those."

"I did... But I figured I might need them again. For emergencies." She was ashamed, knowing they were a temporary solution to a permanent problem, and she knew she could come up with a million reasons to justify her keeping them, but none of them would ever be good enough for Anna.

"I thought we were done with running away from our problems."

Elsa could feel tears welling up in her eyes. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to hold them back, hugging arms to her body. "You don't understand. It keeps getting stronger." She took a deep breath, trying to regain what little composure she had left, and left the room entering back into the hallway, brushing past Anna on her way out.

"I'm trying to understand." She was frustrated, Elsa could tell. "But this just seems like such a step backwards. Wouldn't it be better to try and figure out what's wrong though, rather than just bottling it up?"

Elsa ignored her, however, continuing to walk down the hall. What was wrong? That was easy. Too much stress. Too much responsibility. And entire country depended on her. No more time to do what she wanted. Her relationship with her little sister was hanging by a thread. Her powers were getting hard to control again. She just didn't want everything to fall apart again, especially when things were finally starting to come together after so long. The problem definitely was not that she was a lovesick puppy.

"Elsa?" She had caught up with Elsa, catching her older sister's arm in her grasp.

Elsa tensed. "Anna..."

"I was only hoping you would open up a little bit about it. He seems to make you so happy, and—"

"Anna. Enough."

"I mean, I can see you smiling and laughing, so don't act like it's not true. Whenever you're together, whenever you receive a letter, even when you're reading that stupid book!"

Elsa just shook her head, wrenching her arm from her sister's grasp and walking away.

"Elsa!" Anna called after her, following in her footsteps.

"I don't want to talk about it," she mumbled. "Honestly Anna, why do you keep insisting on always coming back to this?"

"We wouldn't have to if you would actually answer me when I ask!" said Anna, with a laugh that held no humor.

"You want an answer?" She new it was probably just a petty fight. She knew she was probably getting carried away. But she was too overwhelmed in her own emotions to care.

Without paying heed to where she was going, the two of them had ended up in the entrance hall. Her voice carried so that it rang throughout the entire room.

"Yeah, I'd kind of appreciate one!"

"Fine! Well, I don't care if he comes back today, or next week, or next month, or even next year! Hell, I don't care if he ever comes back, got it?"

A familiar voice came from the open doorway, which both of them caught up in their argument had failed to notice was now open. "Well, if that's the case, perhaps I should just take my things and head back home?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, not a very happy chapter. And not a lot Helsa either. There'll be more in the next one, I swear. To be honest, part of the reason it took a while to update was because I'm still not entirely happy with this (although I probably shouldn't be saying that).


	9. Throwing Pebbles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How do I ever get anything done. Also this chapter's inspired by this http://youtu.be/omh7RVL-Vhk because I am a derivative hack

"Hans!" the two girls cried in unison, Anna in surprise and pleasure, Elsa is shock and mortification.

"In the flesh," he said, broad grin on his face.

Elsa went pale and shrunk back, eyes wide in horror as if she were seeing a ghost. Anna on the other hand barreled toward him, crushing him and practically knocking him over in a tight embrace. "You're back! Oh my god, I've missed you!"

"Woah, careful there." Hans laughed, picking her up and twirling her before pulling her back into a hug. "Of course. You didn't think I'd forget about you guys, did you?"

"But you're early!" she said in disbelief as though she couldn't quite believe he was actually there.

"I may or may not have stretched the truth about the time of my departure in your sister's letter. This isn't a bad time, is it?"

"No, no, not at all!" Anna insisted as he set her down and they let go of each other. "What are we doing, standing in the doorway like a pair of idiots! Come in, come in. You must be worn from your journey." Anna quickly ushered him inside.

"I'm fine, really," said Hans. "Never better. Quit worrying about me, I want to hear about you. How's my best girl?"

"Anna's fine," she said. "Fantastic actually, now that you're here. I hope you had a miserable time in the Southern Isles because there is no way you're going back, I missed you too much." She punched him affectionately on the shoulder, bright smile on her face.

"Likewise. The missing you part, anyway, not the hoping you were miserable part."

Elsa watched the pair of them from a few feet away. The way they talked to each other with such easiness, as though they were very old friends, made her feel traces of jealousy, amplified by the fact that her relationship with Anna was growing more strained at this point in time. Whether she was jealous of Hans for getting along so well with her sister or of Anna for... why would she be jealous of Anna, anyways? Nevertheless, she worked to suppress any feelings of envy.

"How long are you staying this time?" asked Anna.

"Well that all depends, really." Hans gaze drifted from Anna over to Elsa. For the first time since he had arrived, the two of them made eye contact. He was still smiling—perhaps more out of courtesy than anything else— but the bright-eyed, broad-grinned boy who had been so happy to see Anna was no longer present. She was too mortified to reciprocate the smile, quickly averting her eyes away.

He approached her cautiously. "Hi." He sounded almost as awkward and she felt.

"Hello." Secretly she was grateful for the informal greeting, hoping that meant he hadn't taken anything she had said a moment ago to heart. She struggled for words. "I, um... ah..."

He cleared his throat. "Yes..."

"I... It was an accident," she blurted out. "I didn't mean... At least... Not like..." She kept wringing her hands, still tongue tied, praying silently that her powers wouldn't act up while her heart was hammering so hard in her chest.

For a moment there was nothing but awkward silence. Anna watched the two of them anxiously, glancing back and forth between the two of them, for once not saying a word.

Elsa was the first to break it. "You're, uh... We weren't expecting you to be here so soon." It was obvious, but it was all she could think to say.

"I was hoping it would be a pleasant surprise," he said, his voice careful, "but if you like, I can come back in a couple weeks."

"No!" she cried, too quick, too forceful, too desperate, only causing herself further embarrassment. "I mean... No. It's fine. You don't... have to leave."

He bowed. "I apologize if I inconvenienced you in any way, Your Majesty."

She shook her head. "Don't be ridiculous," she said, a little disheartened that they were back to the formalities. "I, uh... Good to have you back," she said, nodding to him curtly.

Elsa looked into his eyes, and was surprised to see no coldness in them, but rather earnestness. "Good to be back."

She sighed. "Come on, let's show you to your room so can settle in."

The corner of his lips twitched upward in a small smile. "So we're good then?"

She chuckled, concealing her mouth behind her hand. "Yeah. We're good."

—

It was late into the evening when Elsa heard an urgent knocking on her bedroom door.

"Who is it?" She asked, crouched in her armchair, pouring over an open book.

More knocking and a muffled voice from the other side of the door. "It's me, Anna. Open up already!"

"Alright, alright," she said, wonder what on earth her sister could be wanting at this hour.

Elsa got up from where she sat to let her younger sister in. As soon as she opened the door, Anna burst into the room.

"What is it?" asked Elsa at seeing Anna's wide eyes and frazzled expression.

"Check outside your window!" Her tone was urgent.

"What?" asked Elsa, brow furrowed in confusion, no idea what she could possibly be on about.

She pushed at Elsa's back, forcing her over to the window. "Look! Prince Charming is throwing rocks at your windowsill."

"What, not he's not," said Elsa automatically even though in reality she had no idea whether this accusation was true or false. "And don't call him that!" Despite a name not being used, she knew exactly who Anna was talking about.

Just then she heard a sharp clink against the windowpane.

"What did I tell you?" said Anna. Elsa could practically hear the grin in her voice.

Another clink.

"Oh, shut up," she hissed. Could it really be? She could feel her heart skip a beat, and she immediately tried to shut down any smidgins of hope she had, not wanting to give Anna the satisfaction. She opened the window, trying to ignore the sound of Anna's giggling.

Peering down, she could see the tall, dark figure of Hans standing far below, looking up at her from the castle courtyard.

"Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down thy golden hair," he called out to her, his voice carrying despite the fact that it was low.

"I think you have the wrong princess," she called back to him, leaning out over the edge of the windowsill so that they could properly see each other.

"I know," he said, this time much louder. "Got your attention though, didn't I?"

Elsa rolled her eyes. She really couldn't argue with his logic, even if she didn't approve of his tactics. "You know," she replied tersely, "you could break something throwing rocks like that."

"They're pebbles!" He shouted, and she could have sworn she detected a hint of defensiveness in his voice. He held out a hand, showing them to her.

Despite her determination to remain unfazed by whatever he said, she stifled a laugh behind her hand. He cracked a grin, clearly pleased at her reaction.

She bit her lip, starting to feel unsure. She turned to look back at Anna. "What should I do?" she whispered. She'd never encountered anything like this in her entire life.

"Go!" she insisted. "Get down there. Don't you want to?"

"What, no!"

Anna gave her a look.

"Maybe... Ok, yes," she admitted.

"Then go!" Elsa was surprised by exactly how forceful Anna's tone could to be.

"What? N-no, I can't do that!" It was unethical, completely out of line to go sneaking around at night with handsome princes with whom she had no romantic entanglements. So much could go wrong. Or worse, so much could go right. Either possibility was absolutely terrifying.

"Or you could invite him up here instead," mused Anna, smirk on her face. "I mean think about it. You two. Together. In your room. Alone."

"Anna!" She felt her ears burning, and she couldn't believe her sister even had the audacity to suggest such a thing.

She snickered. "Fine. But at the very least, for once will you do something impulsive! You're the queen of an entire country, working eight days a week. Do you want to spend your entire life attending boring council meetings or do you want to stroll in the moonlight with your P—your Not Prince Charming?" She was almost going to say it but she withered under the look Elsa gave her.

Elsa sighed. Maybe Anna was right. Or maybe it was just way to late for her to come up with a sound counterargument when she wanted nothing more than to listen to her sister. "Alright. But I'm not inviting him up here."

Anna smiled smugly. "Fair enough. Have fun."

Elsa rolled her eyes, her lips a thin line. "You know, you've been reading too many fairy tales," she said, unable to help herself. Maybe she was growing too soft. She couldn't believe she was actually crazy enough to be doing this.

Anna just laughed.

"Queen Elsa?" She heard Hans' voice again from outside.

She leaned out the window again. "Shhhh! Just give me a second." She took a deep breath. "And you might want to stand back."

Elsa waved her hand, conjuring up a staircase of snow from the window down to the courtyard. She climbed out through the window. The snow froze beneath her feet as she made her way down, quickly spreading along the staircase until the entire thing was solid ice.

She smiled awkwardly at him from the foot of the staircase. "Hi." It was so much more difficult to be eloquent in person.

His gaze lingered upon her for a moment, taking in her appearance. Her cheeks flushed pink. He smiled back. "Hi."

"So... Where to?" she asked, looking around the empty courtyard expectantly.

"I... Actually, I don't know," he admitted. "I must confess that I didn't actually think this would work."

She snorted, shaking her head in disbelief. "So no plans?"

"No, not really."

"We could go for a walk," she offered, folding her arms. The air surrounding her was growing chilly, and she could see the barest traces of ice beginning to form around where she stood. She dearly wished she wasn't quite so nervous. "Besides, now that you're here in person, you can share those stories I've been wanting to hear for so long." It came out more like a question than a statement. Her breath began forming clouds of fog with the drop in temperature.

"Uh, sure! If that's what the lady wants."

_Incredible._

"How are you even real?" she asked him. "You're killing me with kindness, you do know that, right? I mean, you're not even upset about... earlier today." She cringed at the thought. 

He shrugged. "Don't know the context. Figured there's an explanation and that you'd tell me at one point or another if you wanted me to know."

She groaned. "You are a strangely reasonable person."

How was it possible for someone to be so understanding? After eighteen years of Anna's stubbornness, even minus the absent years, she'd gotten used to having to argue for her way. It was absolutely bizarre. 

"Is that a bad thing?"

"For me, yes." How was she supposed to keep up her ice queen facade with all these jittery feelings he was giving her in the pit of her stomach? 

"I just figured it'd be nice for you to have one less person in your life who's constantly making demands of you."

She said nothing, contemplating over in her mind the words he had just said.

He made the slight bow. "The night belongs to you, Your Highness."

Well, if she was going to do something completely crazy she might as well go all out and not waste time with formalities. "I think... just 'Elsa' would be fine from now on." She smiled warmly, and the ice around her melted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed! The tension was solved rather quickly, sorry if that was a disappointment


	10. Goodnight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow that ended up much longer than I expected. Sorry, late update, but I rewrote this chapter so many times. Took a lot of inspiration from other things, specifically a certain lake scene from a certain movie.

"So there I was, being held at gunpoint while he's trying to make a run for it, and I thought 'surely he's going to get away', but just then my first left tenant knocks him right overboard. Falls straight into the water."

"Oh, thank God," she said, humoring him slightly as she listened to his story. If he noticed, he didn't show it.

"He was quite intimidating. I mean, the guy's six-foot four, got a scar on the left side of his face from his temple to his chin, and looks like he he could just about crush my skull with one hand; and for some reason he's obsessed treasure that he's already paid an arm and a leg for—quite literally might I add. Imagine being the person in the way of that."

"Terrifying."

"Very." But he could see that she was trying not to laugh. "What are you smiling about?" he asked, mystified.

"I'm sorry, I'm just trying to picture you with a ponytail," she said. Truth he told, she was having very little success. Her answer seemed to surprise him. "Please tell me you went through a long hair phase, otherwise, I'll just be disappointed."

"No! Ok, maybe. Where you even listening to word I was saying?"

"Yes!" she said, suppressing laughter. She really had been, even with her runaway imagination. "I'm sorry. I swear, I'm paying attention."

"And now you're laughing at me," he said.

"No, I'm not." Shaking her head, She covered her mouth with her hand, still fighting that urge to laugh before giving in and letting out a giggle.

"Yes, you are," he said, but he chuckled lightly, clearly not offended. She was relieved, for she honestly hadn't been trying to be rude. "It's ok, I looked pretty ridiculous anyways."

The courtyard was empty as it should have been so late in the evening, save for the two of them sitting on a stone bench and talking, all previous thoughts of the time gone long ago. The moon hung in the night sky, the stars twinkled, the garden was in full bloom, and there was a cool summer breeze in the air. It was a perfect summer night.

Their laughter finally subsided.

"... Actually, uh... my father wanted me to go back into the navy."

"Really?" she asked, looking at him in surprise.

He nodded solemnly.

"When?" 

"Well, he didn't exactly give me a date, but I'm assuming he meant sooner rather than later. I think he's under the impression that it's pretty much the only future I'll really have. I'm already an officer. He said just give it a couple years, I'll keep moving up in ranks. Eventually, I could become an admiral."

"That sounds like an incredible opportunity," said Elsa. She kept her head down, her eyes way from him and fixated on her hands which were folded in her lap. She had this sinking feeling in her her chest, but she couldn't understand why. Well, she knew why, but she preferred the version where she simply pretended not to know.

He shrugged. "I suppose, but I managed to talk him out of it."

"Why?" She looked up at him again, eyes wide in surprise and confusion. She regretted the decision as soon a she's made it, for he was looking right at her, and their eyes met.

"I decided the excitement wasn't worth the risk anymore. Not when I think I've finally found something I want to live for."

It was a bold statement, a bold one and a broad one as well. Elsa didn't want to think about the possibly meanings it could have held. She certainly didn't dare to hope it meant what she thought it did. She wanted to say something, anything, but her voice caught in her throat.

"Besides," he added hastily, "I talked to him, and after some convincing, he appointed me as the ambassador to represent the Southern Isles for Arandelle."

She blinked, unsure if she really heard what she thought she heard. "What?"

He grinned sheepishly. "Looking forward to doing business with you in the future," he said, it sounding much more like a question than a statement.

"That's..." Elsa paused, taking a moment to process the information in her head. Once the realization hit, her face broke into a huge grin. "That's wonderful, Hans. I'm so happy for you."

"I wanted to tell you earlier, but, well, you know..."

"Oh, yeah." She nodded, her smile fading from her face. "I, uh..." She sighed, eyes averted away and looking down at her hands. "I'm sorry about what I said."

"About not wanting me here?"

She nodded, too ashamed to look at him. "You do know I didn't mean it, right?"

"It's ok. People say things they wouldn't normally say when they're mad or scared or stressed."

She was filled with overwhelming guilt. "There you go again," she said, groaning as she buried her head in her hands. "Perfect as usual." He was much too understanding for his own good.

"I'm flattered that you think so, but trust me, I'm really not." She was surprised to see that for the first time, it was he who wouldn't look at her.

She sighed. "Sometimes I just... wish I was normal."

"What, you want to just be like everybody else?" he said, looking at her as though she were crazy.

"Only sometimes."

She'd come to appreciate her magic, but there would still be times when she still thought it was much more trouble than it was really worth in the end.

"But you're incredible! You would trade that in to be ordinary?"

She'd never seen him so worked up. "You don't understand." She hung her head low. Her hands felt cold in her lap.

"Do you even know what that's like?" he asked.

"You mean nobody looking to me for answers?" she said. "Not having to be a freak? No more responsibility?" Her voice sounded so wistful that she scared herself.

"It's better than just being a dime a dozen. Having to constantly fight for attention or being told you'll never amount to anything." He fiddled with the fabric of his gloves.

"An entire country is looking to you for guidance. Everybody judging you, watching your every move, just waiting for you to crash and burn." Her lower lip trembled. She looked up at the castle. There were still lights in several of the windows.

"—feeling like you're completely dispensable. I just... I wish I could have a place of my own. Where I'm in charge, and nobody's shadow to stand in." He followed her gaze, looking up at the castle as well.

"Oh yeah sure, always having to be here at eight or there at five and never having time to do what you want," she said, unable to keep the resentment out of her tone. She turned her gaze back down to the floor.

"You're just like everybody else..."

"You're not like anybody else..."

"Yet you're just..."

"You feel so..."

"—Alone."

The word was said in unison, surprising the both of them. They turned back to look at each other.

"Well," said Hans, "it was always a silly wish, anyways."

"What do you wish?" she asked him curiously.

"I don't know what I wish anymore."

An idea struck her. She scooted closer to him on the bench. "Tell me a secret," she said, smiling mischievously.

"What?" he asked, the confusion evident on his face.

"The conversation was getting way too somber, I figured we could try to lighten it up." When he gave her a questioning look, she adjusted herself so that she faced more toward him. "Here, I'll go first. Um, I..." she tried to think of something to say, "like sleeping in late, and sometimes I dream in black and white."

He thought for a moment. "When I was five, I wanted to be a pirate when I grew up."

"I hate spring showers because sometimes the rain turns to ice and it's like being showered in tiny pebbles."

"When I was bored, I would sock slide down the castle corridors."

"I still don't know what happened to my tiara after coronation day."

"My brothers Damien and Derek would often try to convince me I was adopted; one time it actually worked."

"I actually use ice to keep my hair in place, and when I want to hide from my advisors or from Anna, I sneak up to the roof."

"One time I asked my brother William why our last name was Westerguard when we live in the Southern Isles."

"That's the worst joke I've ever heard. What was his answer?"

"He didn't seem to think it was as funny either because he hit me in the head."

"Let's see... Once I spent an entire evening counting every single salad plate we own."

"And how many are there?"

"997. It's not only are we three short but the number's uneven, and it's driving me mad."

"Hm... I haven't danced with you since the ball."

"That's a fact, not a secret," she pointed out.

"The secret is that I still want to."

She looked over at him in surprise, their eyes meeting making her mind go blank. She really wanted to say something clever or witty but was at a loss for words.

Hans gave her a small smile. He stood up, offering his hand out to her.

She began to reach out for him, but a realization occurred to her, and she stopped herself before she could actually touch his hand. She retracted her hand. "I-I'm not wearing any gloves."

"That's ok! I trust you." He took her by the hands. She stood up from the bench and allowed herself to be lead under the shade of a large nearby tree, rolling her eyes but a smile playing across her lips nonetheless.

He let go of one of her hands, twirling her in place. She laughed, her prior feelings of anxiety beginning to fade. "I feel ridiculous."

"Alright, so no more twirling then." Their dancing slowed, one of his hands still intertwined with hers while his other hand went around her waist, and one of hers draped over his shoulder. They swayed back and forth under the canopy of the tree in the almost silence, the only sounds being the chirping of crickets or the occasional rustle.

She rested her head on his shoulder, her body relaxing against his figure. Wanting to be immersed in the moment, she allowed for her eyes to close, and she could feel his head gently leaning against hers as they danced cheek to cheek. She was surprised by her own bravery, allowing herself to be so intimate with someone, but she was enjoying herself too much to be trifled with worry. It was a while before either of them spoke.

Elsa lifted her head from his shoulder, looking briefly up at him before darting her eyes away quickly. "What are we doing," she mumbled, coming back to her senses.

"Being indulgent, I suppose," he said, his voice low.

She leaned in closer to him, their foreheads now touching. "You know," she said, "this really isn't all that bad."

He chuckled softly. "Not that bad, huh?"

"You know what I mean."

He was dangerously close.

"Please, do enlighten me."

She struggled for the right words. "I don't think... I've spent this long in actual physical contact with someone in forever."

"I'll let you know if I start to feel cold." She glanced up at him to see that he had an easy smile on his lips.

They were silent for a long moment. "You know, I'm actually really glad you're back," she murmured quietly as they rocked back and forth.

"Me too," he said. "I mean..." He tilted his head back so he could look directly at her, eyes wide, their foreheads no longer touching. He cleared his throat, gaze shifting around awkwardly, sometimes meeting her eyes, sometimes not. "It'll be nice to get the business experience, you know?"

"Yes, of course." A part of her was slightly disappointed at the direction the conversation had taken, but another part of her was also relieved. 

They stopped swaying, but Hans kept rambling. "Plus, nobody needs me at home anyways. And it's beautiful here, and you're beautiful—"

Her cheeks flushed pink, but he took no notice.

"—But that's not why I come here! I mean it is, but it's, uh... and I like seeing Anna because she cares about me even if nobody else does—"

"I do."

"I—What?" He blinked, as if barely registering what she had just said.

"I care," she said earnestly, looking right into his eyes.

Elsa leaned in slowly, the tip of her nose brushing against his. They stood there, foreheads touching, their lips barely inches apart. She closed her eyes, feeling the sensation of his breath tickling her skin. Her hands began to feel cold, her heart racing in her chest. They were so close, all she had to do was lean in just a little more...

"Get a room, you two!" a familiar voice punctured the silence. Elsa and Hans looked up at the castle to see Anna leaning out the window to Elsa's bedroom.

"Anna, what are you still doing in my room?" asked Elsa, who had promptly turned bright red in embarrassment and rage. "Go back to bed!"

"Don't you wanna see who wanted to come say hi?"

For the first time, Elsa noticed another small figure in the window. "Hi!" He waved and grinned a wide, buck-toothed grin.

"Olaf?"

"Elsa!" he cried happily. He leaned over to Anna. "The dreaded ex?" he asked her, gesturing to Hans.

"Yup. Cute, ain't he?"

"And you chose the funny-looking donkey over him because?"

"Don't give me that look, I don't know how true love works."

"Anna!" snapped Elsa, very fed up and still red in the face.

"Fine, fine, I'm gone," said Anna. "Come on, Olaf. I know at least Sven will appreciate our presence."

"Ok! Bye Elsa! Bye ex-fiancé!" And with a last wave they were gone from sight.

They stood there in silence, at a loss for words. Elsa shook her head, still unable to believe her sister's gall. There would definitely be some words later. "Sorry about that. My sister can be, uh..."

He shrugged. "It's ok."

"It's probably for the best." She couldn't bring herself to look at him. "We wouldn't want to rush into things headfirst, right?"

He nodded slowly. "Timing has never really been my strong suit," he said, smiling apologetically. She knew that all too well. He kissed her on the cheek. "Goodnight, Elsa."

Eyes wide, she touched her cheek, the place where he kissed her burning against her icy fingertips, nearly identical to the last time. At last she was able to find words. "I'll, uh... I'll be going then."

Elsa turned away from him, intending to walk away. She hadn't gone two steps before changing her mind, glancing back at him. She paused, then without warning she turned back, and suddenly she was there in front of him again, she reaching up with one hand to pull him into an urgent kiss.

At first there was nothing; he had clearly been caught off guard, and she was worried she'd overstepped some boundary, or perhaps she'd misinterpreted his affections. Maybe he really was just nice. Maybe she really was rushing things too soon. Then after a moment, he stirred, leaning in slightly as he kissed her back, his lips warm and soft against hers, making her senses tingle and her head light.

At last they broke apart, foreheads still touching as they leaned against one another, Elsa's right hand still on his neck, both of them smiling awkwardly.

"You're cold," said Hans, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Sorry," she said. "Nerves."

He shook his head slightly, still smiling. "I thought you didn't want to rush things."

"Unfortunately," said Elsa, "I'm afraid my sense of timing isn't much better than yours."

He laughed softly. "Speaking of time, I'm sure it must be late."

Elsa sighed. "Right." She stepped back from him.

He made a slight bow. "Goodnight Elsa."

She smiled—the kind of smile of two lovers sharing a secret—nodding to him in return. "Goodnight Hans."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you think? Ten chapters in, wow. I had so much trouble with that last bit. Also thank you so much if you'vd sent me a review & I don't reply to it I love you very much I just don't know how to answer


	11. Ice Skating Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thought I'd try something a little different this chapter. Point of view shift, and a lot more internal thought. I just wanted to show Hans' perspective on everything that's happened I suppose, although admittedly I wasn't very good at showing Elsa's thoughts in the past.
> 
> One of my favorite movies is "About a Boy", and while Hans and Will are not incredibly alike, I was inspired by the part where Will meets Rachel.

"Ok, where are you taking me again?" asked Hans.

"To the town square!" Anna said, urging at him to keep moving by continuing to shove at the small of his back.

"And why are going there of all places?"

"It's an ice skating day!" she said, as though that explained everything.

"A what?"

"An ice skating day! Elsa promised. Hurry up. The sooner we get out there the better!"

"Oh, um, ok," he said, not sure what exactly that meant but trusting her enough to follow her lead.

When the pair of them arrived, the scene explained itself to him clearly. A thin layer of ice covered the town square, the fountains also frozen, the ice suspended in beautiful ornate patterns. Plenty of people were already skating, but the one that immediately caught his eye was a girl facing away from them with long, braided white hair and wearing a shimmery blue dress.

"Elsa!" Anna called after her sister.

Elsa turned around, grinning broadly upon seeing her sister. "You're finally here!"

She skated towards them, her movements fluid and graceful. Hans' heart skipped a beat.

"Sorry, this loser overslept," said Anna to her older sister, nudging him with her elbow.

"That's ok," she said, laughing. She looked away from her sister and glanced over at Hans, and he could have sworn that he saw her smile falter for a moment. Perhaps it had just been his imagination though because she seemed to be smiling as bright as ever. However, her eyes were back on Anna. "Come on, you're late." She took Anna by the hand, dragging her onto the ice. A pair of skates appeared beneath Anna's feet, presumably conjured up by Elsa's magic.

"Woah!" said Anna, nearly slipping, struggling to keep her balance. Elsa caught her, leading her farther into the heart of the rink.

Hans watched the pair of them from the where he stood at the edge of the square. They spun circles around each other, smiling and laughing. Every once in a while, Anna would trip herself up, Elsa being the one that was much more adept to skating of the two. Occasionally he would catch Anna's eye and give her a small grin. She would nod her head in the direction of her sister, gesturing with her hand for him to come over. He always shook his head, eyes wide, hoping to avoid getting onto the ice if he could help it. Eventually she just stopped trying.

There was that one time, however, when rather than catching Anna's eye he caught Elsa's instead. She had skated to a halt, not smiling, just staring, her blue eyes boring into his green ones. He had smiled at her and gave a slight wave, to which she didn't respond. Before either of them could really do or say anything, Anna grabbed her sister's hand, tugging her along, breaking their eye contact.

Just the thought of last night left his stomach was in knots. There was just something about Elsa made his heart race, and he was ashamed to admit that she—well, this whole place really—gave him a warm, fuzzy feeling. He held that feeling responsible for all the events that had happened in the past few months.

Coming to Arandelle had been, in retrospect, a very bad move for Hans. Firstly, he'd come to sort of falling in love with the place, but also—perhaps even more unexpectedly—he'd fallen in love with a girl.

Getting to know Elsa... He had found that she was interesting and funny and smart and attractive, and he couldn't believe that he had her convinced for this long that he was, too.

It was torture. He was slowly beginning to realize what life would be like if he was in any way interesting. If he had anything to say for himself. If he was anything. But he wasn't anything.

He was a mirror. And that was all there was to it.

She'd known. When they met for the first time, somehow, she could tell, and she'd hated him. And that had been that. He was going to marry Anna, and there had been nothing more to say.

And then everything changed. From the moment Anna said it on that fateful day, he'd known the kiss wouldn't work. It was just a shame that he'd had to actually grow attached to her as well. That he'd actually had a glimmer of hope that maybe, possibly, it would work. That he really was Anna's true love. He really had wanted to save her. That was something he hadn't expected; to care for this young girl he had so easily manipulated. But of course he wasn't her true love. He wasn't anything.

He had honestly tried to be whatever he thought Elsa wanted him to be. But it wasn't so simple. By now he was used to adapting, to changing himself, but it had always been to further his own goals. He had never been anything. But this was the first time in his life that he really wanted to. He wanted to be something. He wanted to be more than just a blank slate.

He hadn't expected this sort of sentimental reaction from himself of all people. What was wrong with him? He hated this sort of self-examination at his own psyche. Everything had turned on its head. Elsa was not a target but an arrow, and whether knowingly or not she had found her mark. He'd acted in self defense. That had never happened before; he'd never been a target.

Maybe it was because she was just so much more difficult to emulate. Anna had been easy; she was goofy and cheerful and a little bit clumsy. But Elsa? Elsa was different. Or maybe it was just because he was different. Maybe it was both. He had no idea.

At least everything had worked out in the end for Anna. She was quite charming, in her own Anna way. And now, after all that, he was in fantasy land again. But this time it was different. Whatever he and Anna had been, even on the surface, he knew it wasn't this. He'd gone for Anna because of his ambition, but this? This was beyond him.

He wanted to tell her everything, to confess, to apologize. But how could he possibly do that? What would she do once she knew the truth, once she knew exactly what he was? He'd give anything to live in this state of ignorant bliss forever. How could he possibly ruin it for himself? Once she knew everything, she'd be gone.

And as Elsa glided gracefully along the ice—hair flying behind her as she laughed, looking as though she was without a care in the world— he couldn't help but feel as though he should have been gone a long time ago. It would have been better for the both of them. But he knew that he was too selfish to leave, and the memory of her lips against his was burned in his brain. Her smile made his knees go weak, her laughter made his heart flutter. Elsa had changed him; the damage had been done. She had him bewitched like no one else had done before.

"Hans!" A voice broke through his reverie, bringing him back to reality. He blinked, and saw Elsa skating towards him. To his surprise, she was smiling at him.

"Having fun?" he asked.

She ignored this, taking ahold of him by his hands. "Come, join in," she said.

He shook his head fervently, trying to resist her attempts to get him onto the ice. "Oh no, I couldn't."

"You must! It'll be fun!"

"Really, I couldn't—"

"Oh yes, you could."

"I don't even have skates." He cringed as she dragged him onto the ice, trying desperately to keep his footing.

She waved her hand, and beneath his shoes a set of skates appeared out of ice. "There."

He tried to move forward on his own and nearly slipped. "Elsa, please," he said anxiously. Hans clung to her by her hands, but he was too embarrassed to admit that he'd never gone ice skating a day in his life.

She laughed, but she didn't let go of him. She carefully skated backwards, leading him along slowly as he moved across the ice, wobbling as he went.

"You just push with one foot, and then with the other," she instructed. Her smile was patient.

With her advice he managed a few unsteady steps.

"There you go!" she said. His lips twitched upward in a smile, his eyes meeting hers.

"Gangway!" Anna barreled through, pushing Hans from behind, forcing the two of them two let go of each other.

"Anna, what are you—SLOW DOWN!" said Hans as they continued to glide along the ice together, Anna laughing as she continued to push him forward.

Elsa giggled from behind her hand. She skated alongside them for a while, seeming greatly amused. At last she said, "Let him be, Anna."

Anna quit pushing him, and he continued to glide along the ice, unable to direct himself anywhere. He was worried he was going to crash when Elsa seamlessly slipped her hands into his own, slowing them both down and changing their direction. "Woah there," she said, a smile playing on her lips. "Careful. Wouldn't want to crash now, would we?"

Of course, at that moment he slipped, losing his balance. Elsa caught him, gripping his arms, holding him upright. "It's ok, I've got you," she reassured him. "Just keep stepping. Push with one foot and the other will move. One foot, then the next."

He pushed with one foot, moving forward slightly, then staggered.

"Easy, easy."

He tried again, this time with more success.

"There we go." She smiled. "See, it's not so bad, is it?"

She was so graceful, even when skating backwards she didn't stumble or miss a beat. Meanwhile he could barely take a step without nearly falling over. Her smile was like the sunshine. He could've spent forever with his hands in hers as they spun through the square together, her laughter carefree and infectious. Maybe it was the just way her hands seemed to fit perfectly in his; or how a lock of hair always hung low in her eyes, the wind blowing her braided hair, framing her face perfectly as she laughed; or just the dizziness he felt as they spun round and round and round, making his head feel light; but in that moment she was so beautiful, and he was so in love with her.

He knew he was in deep trouble.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, the quote in the summary? Also comes from that movie. I liked it and thought it fit so perfectly because it reminded me so much of the song "love is an open door". it was meant to apply to Elsa, but now I think it applies to Hans as well. Anna opened both their doors up.
> 
> Also, sorry if anybody was under the impression that Hans was really a good guy from the start in this. He really wasn't. I mean, he's definitely changed from the very start. he's not exactly good at the end of frozen, where this story picks up, but he wasn't really evil? he didn't expect to actually care about Anna during frozen, but shit happens I guess? He just decided to see where all this leads since he and Anna obviously went wrong. But I'm really liking the idea of Elsa helping him sort of create an actually identity for himself whether she realizes she's helping or not.


	12. What is Blue?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that for the most part I've been updating weekly. This is so late, and I'm super sorry for that, but I hope you enjoy!

"I can't believe I kissed him, Anna. What's wrong with me?"

"I knew it! So you did kiss him!"

"Annaaaa." Elsa groaned as she paced anxiously back and forth in her nightgown, rubbing her temples, her head pounding.

While Anna surely had had her suspicions, it wasn't until now that they were finally confirmed. She didn't know how her sister would react at the news, but she certainly hadn't expected this. Actually, a small part of her had expected it, she just had hoped it wouldn't be Anna's actual response. The snow queen looked over at her younger sister who lay sprawled across her bed, seemingly lazy, but she could see that she was watching Elsa with an expression of bright-eyed curiosity. Elsa sat down on the bed beside her.

"Tell me everything." Anna rolled over onto her stomach, head propped up between her hands as she looked up expectantly at her sister.

"Anna, no." Elsa buried her face in her hands. She definitely was not in the mood for an interrogation. "You don't understand. This is a complete disaster."

"I don't get it, I thought you liked him?" Anna rolled over onto her back, braids hanging over the edge of Elsa's bed as she looked up at her older sister in confusion.

"That's the problem."

She sighed. After that horrible blunder of hers during his arrival, they were just starting to get back on the right track before she had to go and screw everything up. She knew it had been too soon; she couldn't stop doubting herself and doubting him. She'd been able to put it from her mind while out skating; they were having fun, and Anna was there, and she was able to put on a good face. But now, days after the incident, she could hardly even face him.

"What am I going to do?" she asked, as though asking her younger sister for advice was a sound thing to do in this situation.

"Propose?" suggested Anna.

Elsa scoffed and rolled her eyes. That's right, this was Anna she was talking to here. She couldn't believe she'd forgotten. "Anna, I'm being serious."

"So am I. Women can propose, too, you know," said Anna. She waved her hand lazily, then proceeded to fold her arms behind her head.

She supposed that was true, but it was hardly the point. Elsa rolled her eyes. "Nobody is proposing to anyone."

"Well, why not?" asked Anna.

"Well, because..." she said as her fingers fumbled through braid, unsure how exactly to answer the question. But she knew there would definitely be no proposing for sure. 

"Not saying you have to put a ring on it, but really, why not make it official? And don't give me the 'we're practically strangers' line you've been reciting practically since day one," said Anna dryly. "We're about several months, a dozen or so letters, and a kiss too late for that excuse."

Elsa sighed. Anna was probably right.

"It's more complicated than that."

She knew that answer was bullshit as well, so of course Anna didn't leave it at that, no matter how much Elsa might have wished it. It simply wasn't in her nature.

"How? You like him; he likes you. What could be any more simple?" asked Anna.

"He's a distraction." It was the simplest answer she could come up with, and the first one that popped into her head. It wasn't a lie, anyhow.

"A distraction that you kissed."

She shook her head. "I have to keep my priorities intact. And I know that lately I haven't been doing a very good job of that, but trust me, this is what's best for everyone involved."

The kingdom and Anna came first always. Everything else could wait. She knew explaining that to her sister would be useless, but she tried anyways.

"You know, you can't just assume you always know what's best for everyone," said Anna. She sat up, giving her sister a pointed look.

"I am queen. I think it's part of my job to know what's best for everyone," she said, her voice raised. It came out colder than she had wanted, and she couldn't help but feel a twinge of regret. She hated when that side of her came out, especially if it was Anna she was talking to in that way. Elsa took a deep breath, trying to warm herself up. "Sorry. But right now it's just you and me, and I'm not ready to change that. We've got to look out for each other." She tried for a reassuring smile.

Anna frowned. "Yeah, but I also have Kristoff. What happens if I'm not around? I can't be here to watch you all the time. Just me isn't enough."

Elsa sighed in resignation. Perhaps Anna had a point, but she didn't even know if she was ready for that sort of commitment. She knew Anna was referring to Elsa having a long-term partner; such prospects were the furthest possible thing from her mind. Her baby sister really did have some strange ideas about love.

"You know that I'm glad that you're happy with Kristoff, but ever since you got with him I've been getting a 'I'm so happy with someone, and I wish you would also have someone so that you can be happy, too' vibe from you." She smiled wryly, nudging her sister on the shoulder playfully.

Anna gave Elsa a cheeky grin and nudged her back, a little more forceful. "I'm only telling you what I see. I wouldn't say anything if I didn't think you two had a chance. If I'm being completely honest," she said, going in just a few sentences from humorous to serious, "I think he loves you."

She pursed her lips. "Maybe." But even "maybe" was probably getting Anna's hopes too high.

"Do you love him, too?"

She froze up. The answer should have been easy. It was a yes or no question. So why was she suddenly tongue-tied?

"Well?"

She could feel Anna's expectant eyes on her. "I'm..." She struggled to find the right word. "Interested in him," she said, finally settling on something. It may not have been the yes or no Anna had wanted, but at least it was something, and it wasn't a lie. 

"Interested? What's so interesting about him?" asked Anna as though she couldn't possibly understand how a person could be "interesting" of all things.

Fed up with always having to beat around the bush, she snapped, "Ok Anna, here's my last ounce of dignity. Please, I hope you relish it because I know you've been wanting to hear it. I like him, ok? I don't know what I want him to be for me, but I have feelings for him."

Something about finally admitting it out loud was a relief, as though a weight had been lifted off her chest. At the same time she could feel her face going red, and she knew she would never be able to live this moment down, sure that Anna would tease her mercilessly. But she didn't.

"And you couldn't just tell me this from the start because?"

She thought about it. "I... I dunno. Maybe I thought if I didn't say it out loud then that meant I could deny it. And I figured you would laugh at me."

Who was she kidding? This was her sister, her best friend in the world. If she couldn't tell Anna then who else could she tell?

"I'm going to laugh at you regardless," said Anna.

 _Well that's comforting,_ thought Elsa but before she could say anything Anna continued:

"That's what sisters do. But only because I love you."

"Well, I love you more," said Elsa, giving her little sister a tweak on the nose.

Anna giggled. "So, are you gonna see him again?" she asked.

Elsa shrugged. "Dunno." She hoped that the subject would drop, but she doubted it would.

"Why not?" asked Anna.

Yup. Clearly, there would be no satisfying her; she was still full of questions.

"Because I've been avoiding him." She didn't want to dwell on her idiocy, and seeing him only made it worse.

"Well, that's not a brilliant idea is it? He lives in our damn castle, you're gonna have to see him sometime."

"Language," warned Elsa, to which Anna rolled her eyes in response. Nevertheless, she knew that Anna was probably right, but that didn't mean just because it was the right thing that it was going to be easy for her, or that she wanted to listen to her at all. "Anyways, I just can't, ok? I'm scared. He's understanding, he's smart, handsome, he makes me laugh. It's like he's perfect or something." If that wasn't a confession, she didn't know what was. "If I end it now, it can stay like that, and everything will be alright."

"Tell me," said Anna. She put one hand on Elsa's shoulder, turning her body so that the snow queen had no choice but to meet her eyes. "Are you more afraid of what you'll learn about him, or what he'll learn about you?"

She didn't answer.

"Give it a chance," said Anna. "You spent years in solitude. Continue like this, and you won't really get to know anyone."

"I know you," she pointed out. That was enough, wasn't it?

Anna gave a small smile. "True."

Just then, there was an abrupt knock on the door. Elsa stood up, brow furrowed in confusion as she approached the door. "I wonder who that could be?" And what could they possibly want?

"Elsa?" The voice called from the other side of the door, muffled but still very familiar.

The color drained from Elsa's face as the realization dawned on her. She turned back to face Anna. "It's Hans," she whispered, panic building up inside her. She couldn't possibly put off seeing him now, but at this hour? It was hardly proper. Not that it had stopped her before.

"Speak of the devil," muttered Anna. When Elsa didn't respond she added, "Well, see what he wants!" the impatience evident in her voice.

"I can't do that!" she said, voice barely audible, but all the same she tried her best to convey how serious she meant it as best as she possibly could in her hushed tone.

"Well," said Anna, "Why not?" 

Anna looked way too eager about this than she was really comfortable with. Elsa wished that Anna wouldlower her volume as well, but unfortunately she didn't seem to be catching on.

"Why not?" she asked, looking at her sister with incredulity. She could think of several reasons as to why she shouldn't and couldn't answer that door, but she went with the first one that came to mind. "I'm in my nightgown!"

"So?"

"So, I—"

"Hello?" Hans voice came again.

Elsa suppressed a shriek, eyes bulging, clenching and unclenching her fists in frustration. "Great, he heard you."

"You better answer that then," said Anna, the smirk on her face making her sick to her stomach. Elsa almost certain she actually had done everything on purpose.

She turned back to face the door and took a deep breath. She could do this. She could definitely do this. Probably. Opening the door up just a crack, she peeked her head through and saw the tall redhead standing there, just as she had expected.

When he saw her, his smile widened, instantly making her feel guilty. "Hey."

"Hi," she said, sounding so awkward that she wished she could just shrink back and close the door and pretend it never happened.

"Uh," he said, clearing his throat as he fidgeted. "Is this a bad time?"

"No, not at all!" she said, lying through her teeth, but she tried her best to sound nonchalant. Although, despite her embarrassment and frustration, a small part of her was pleased to see him, just as it always was. 

"I just figured we could talk, I'm sorry if this is inconvenient."

"Oh no, it's fine."

It definitely wasn't fine, but she was queen of Arandelle; she could handle anything.

"I'm not interrupting anything, am I? I could have sworn I heard Anna," said Hans, trying to peer into Elsa's room through the narrow opening.

"Yeah, it's me!" called Anna from the bed, and Elsa prayed that Anna wouldn't do or say anything to make this any worse than it needed to be. "Don't worry, you're not interrupting."

He chuckled quietly. "May I come in?"

"You... could," said Elsa, completely at a loss for what to say. "But, see, the thing is, that uh... I'm, uh. Busy right now. So..."

"Oh!" He appeared to be as much at a loss for words as she was.

"Yeah... So I... I'll be going now. It's been nice talking to you." She tried to smile, definitely not mentally chastising herself over now that entire interaction had been all but pointless.

"You, too."

"Yeah. Ok. Bye, then." She quickly shut the door, turning around and letting out a large sigh of relief as she leaned her weight against it. Her eyes met Anna's, who said nothing, but the look she gave her was enough to make Elsa groan and open the door to him again, still only allowing just a small sliver of an opening. She was surprised to see that he was still standing there; then again, it had only been a few seconds since she had shut the door on him.

"Sorry," she said, smiling apologetically, her cheeks growing red with embarrassment.

His lips twitched upward in a small smile. "No problem."

"I just, uh..." She gulped, the blankness in her brain leaving her feeling tongue-tied.

Anna spoke up from where she sat on her sister's bed, much to Elsa's dismay. "As adorably painful and awkward this is to witness firsthand, I have to wonder if all your conversations go like this."

Wanting to get away as soon as she could, Elsa quickly slipped out of her room, leaving the door to her room just ajar, trying to ignore the fact that she stood there before him in the dimly lit corridor dressed in her old nightgown. "Sorry." He merely nodded. "So, how are you?" she asked him out of politeness.

"Good." Hans smiled, and she couldn't tell if he was humoring her or not. "Good. Very good. And you?"

"I'm doing quite well." Her smile in return was weak, but she managed.

"Have you been avoiding me?" His question surprised her. "For the past few days, I hardly said a word to you. It's like I haven't had the chance to."

Elsa took a step away from him. "What? No, of course not," she insisted. "I've just been, uh... busy." It was a lie. Not a complete lie but a lie nonetheless. He didn't answer, and she knew he didn't believe her. She knew she was going to have to explain herself. "Listen, about the other night..."

"Yes?"

She couldn't stop wringing her hands, his eyes on her making her even more nervous than she already was. "About the, um... the kiss." No ice, at least not yet, but the air around her was growing colder. She kept rambling, unable to filter the words in her brain that were coming out her mouth. "All this is very new to me, I'm not sure how I feel, and I think it would just be better if..."

"If we didn't go there again?" he asked. Quickly backtracking, he added hastily, "Not that I'm saying at you and I are—" he motioned between the two of them with his hand.

"Oh no, not at all," said Elsa with a relieved smile, glad that he seemed to understand.

Of course, Anna chose that moment to speak up again, reminding everyone of her existence. "That's ok, Hans. She likes you; she told me."

Elsa's face was burning. Desperate to get away of her room and far from Anna, Elsa said quickly to Hans, "Walk with me, will you?"

"Sure," he answered with surprise. "Why are we—"

"Anna."

That seemed to be an answer enough for him. "Ah."

"Here, walk with me. Trust me?" asked Elsa, wanting his permission before she touched him any more.

"Of course."

Reassured, she carefully slipped her arm in around his, and they began slowly making they're way down the castle corridors, the halls dimly due to the time of day. They walked in near total silence, first of which to break it was Hans.

"Well, that was something."

I>That's one way to put it. "I can't believe she said that," said Elsa, still very red in the face. He was going to ask her about it, she just knew it.

"Do you really—"

"I don't want to talk about it," she muttered.

"Aright, fine. That's fine."

Silence fell upon the pair of them again. Finally—unable to bear the silence for much longer—Elsa spoke up. "So, are you... quite happy with your stay here?"

"More than I've ever been." Shadows passed over them as they walked down the large empty hallway, as they fell in and out of darkness. The candles in the halls barely managing to keep the corridors lit. "And you?"

"Am I enjoying my stay?" asked Elsa playfully, raising an eyebrow as she suppressed an amused smile.

"No, I..." He shook his head, laughing at himself. "I mean, are you happy?"

"Yes!" Elsa really tried to sound as sincere as possible. Despite all of life's complications and interruptions, she was. The corridor came to an end, and Elsa realized that they were walking into the grand hall. It looked much different in the darkness; eerie and bare without the tables and decorations and chattering people. The dark shadows swallowed up the emptiness, the silence almost tangible.

"You're a very good ice skater," said Hans.

Elsa let go of his arm and with a few quick steps she turned to face Hans so that she stood in front of him. "Well, I had to be good at something since you were such a good dancer." She flashed a grin, her confidence surprising even herself. How could a person make her feel so at ease yet so nervous at the same time?

He chuckled. "I try."

There was a faint light spilling into the vast room through the wide open doors of a familiar balcony, as if it were calling them to come closer.

"Come." Feeling braver, Elsa took Hans by the hands and led him outside. Stepping out onto the marble balcony, Elsa was hit by the faint breeze of the cool night air.

"Speaking of dancing," said Hans, "This is quite the trip down memory lane."

"Right? God, it feels like it's been forever."

He let go of one of her hands, twirling her in place. She laughed, feeling light as a feather, taking his hand in hers once more, her worries forgotten for the time being.

"I feel like an idiot," mumbled Elsa, her senses coming back at last, but she couldn't shake the grin on her face, "twirling around in my pajamas with you."

"Well, it's hardly the first time you've danced with me," said Hans. "We should go ice skating again sometime. It's not fair that I'm the only one that gets to show off. I'll even wear my pajamas, if it'll make you feel better." He grinned. They swayed back and forth, dancing slowly with him feeling almost effortless and this at point.

"I'll think about it." She grinned back, humoring him a little. An idea came to her. "Come on, let's get out of here. Go somewhere private."

"This is private," said Hans.

"It'll be cool, you'll like it," insisted Elsa.

"You know, the nightgown is the very good look on you—"

"Don't change the subject," she said, trying not to laugh.

"No honestly, blue is a nice color; it suits you well."

"You know, some might say blue is a sad color," quipped Elsa in response, although she was secretly flattered.

"Nonsense, blue is not sad," he said, and she was surprised by his indignation. "Why, do you think it's a sad color?"

She ignored his question. "Well, how would you describe it then?" she asked with curiosity.

"How would I describe blue?" He thought about it. "Limitless. Blue is limitless."

She smiled. "And how would you describe me like this?" she challenged him, stepping back and holding out her arms so he could see her fully. "Hair unkempt, face unmade."

"Still the most beautiful woman in Arandelle."

"Awww, that's so sweet; I think you're full of it," she said, giggling, and after a moment he joined in on her laughter. They stopped dancing, still holding each other by the hands. Slowly, Elsa leaned in closer to him until they were just barely touching foreheads. Quietly, she said to him with a grin, "Come on, Silvertongue, let's go to the roof."


	13. Magic tricks

Elsa wasn't quite sure how late it was when the she and Hans climbed up to the castle rooftops, but—for once in her life—she wasn't worried. She was too lost in the moment; enjoying herself, talking and laughing while the full moon shone big and bright overhead, and the stars twinkled pleasantly in the deep blue sky. She never knew the sound of laughter could be so harmonious, almost like it's own special form of music. They sat right beside each other, so close that they were almost touching.

"It's actually really nice up here," said Hans, looking up at the sky. "The view is fantastic."

"What, did you think I was lying when I said you would like it?" asked Elsa, visibly affronted.

"I was... dubious is all."

No, it definitely was not her imagination, that was definitely a pause. "You hesitated." She gave him a suspicious look, her eyes narrowing.

"I did not."

"Oh, don't deny it. I saw you. You completely hesitated," said Elsa, unable to let it rest.

"I swear, I didn't—" he protested, but she cut him off.

"Yes, you did. Don't make me regret taking you up here; you're the only person who has been up here with me." Feigning annoyance with him, she put on her best scowl, but eventually losing out to an amused grin. She couldn't stay mad at him.

"Really? The only one? I'm honored," he said, grinning right back at her.

She rolled her eyes, shaking her head, but she couldn't stop herself from smiling like an idiot. "Don't flatter yourself. The only reason no one else has been up here is because I'm the only one with the means to climb up here."

Well, it wasn't the only reason she'd never brought anyone else up there, but it was a reason.

"That's too bad, I was almost beginning to feel special."

"It's a great way for me to hide when I need it though. I can sit here. By myself. Alone." She sighed. "Well, at least the dangerous ice powers are good for something, right?" There she goes again, making herself sad.

"Hey, that's not true. You can also make one hell of an ice skating rink."

His defense catching her completely off-guard, she laughed, concealing it behind her hand as per usual.

"Why do you do that?" he asked.

"Do what?"

"That thing with your hand when you laugh," he said, making the gesture with his hand. "Like it's something to hide."

"Um..." she said, brow furrowed in thought. "I dunno, I'd never really thought about it." She'd just always done it, she didn't know when or where she had picked it up. "But I think I know where this is going."

"Do you?" he asked.

"Yeah, you were going to say, 'You shouldn't hide your laugh, your smile too pretty to not be seen!' right?" said Elsa, doing her best impression of Hans.

He chuckled. "Is that really what I sound like?" he asked, looking at her in amazement.

"Yes!" she said, joining in on his laughter. 

"Oh really?" He quirked an eyebrow.

"Yes, really."

"Alright, fine," he said, holding his hands up in surrender. "But just so you know, I like your little idiosyncrasies too much to say something like that."

She smiled bashfully, her eyes carefully averted away from him. "You don't mean that..."

"Yes, I do."

"Even the scary ice powers?" She turned to look at him again, daring to meet his eyes. She wished there was some way she could pry the truth from them. "Do you like that cute little idiosyncrasy?"

She wasn't expecting a yes, even if she wanted one more than anything. After all, who could love a monster?

"I do. I really do."

Neither of them spoke; they just sat there, staring into each other's eyes, barest traces of a smile on their lips.

Hans reached up, tenderly brushing a lock of hair out of her eyes. "Has anyone ever told you that your hair looks like starlight?"

She felt the heat rise in her cheeks, but her eyes stayed fixated on his. "Looks like you would be the first," she murmured with a grin. "You know, I should just keep you around so that you could say nice things like that to me all the time," she added, only somewhat joking.

"Well, I would, but you're going to have to stop avoiding me for that," said Hans matter-of-factly.

"I-I wasn't—that's not..." Elsa sighed. She was tired of swimming in lies. She just wished she could explain everything to him, but to do that she would have to understand what exactly was going on herself.

In an attempt to alleviate the tension, Elsa leaned in and whispered to him, "Hey, wanna see a magic trick?"

"A magic trick?"

"Yeah. Watch this." She held out her hand and blew into it. A spiral of white snow swirled around and around in the palm of her hand, the snowflakes glistening in the faint light.

Eyes transfixed upon Elsa, he watched in admiration, but a moment later he scoffed. "I could do that."

"I'd like to see you try," said Elsa, amused greatly by his audacity.

"Ok, maybe not exactly that, but I bet I could one-up it," he said with a smirk.

She rolled her eyes, but on her lips was a smile that matched his. "Fine. Let's see what you've got," she said, now looking at him expectantly.

"Alright." To her surprise, he removed his gloves, holding them out for her to see. "I'm going to make these disappear."

"I can't believe this!" said Elsa in mock-surprise as she looked at him, aghast. "Are you parting with your dearly beloved gloves?"

"Hey, my pride is on the line here," he said, indignant, his voice stern. "Watch carefully."

"Oh, ok," said Elsa. She put on her serious face, as she watching him intently, but she couldn't help but smile as she fought to suppress a laugh.

Hans crumpled up the gloves so that they were a ball in his hands. "Here I go. Now this is very complex so you're just going to have to pay close attention. One... Two... Three." He quickly tossed the crumpled ball over his shoulder, and it was gone from her sight. He held out his empty palm to her.

Elsa gasped. "And they're gone! That was terrific." Her face split in a grin as she broke into a fit of giggles.

"Wasn't it, though?" He said, chuckling along with her.

She nudged him on the shoulder, her laughter non-relenting as though she were unable to control herself. To Elsa's utter embarrassment, she snorted loudly, triggering another round of laughter from the both of them. She attempted to speak through her laughter although she could barely breathe, clutching her sides as they began to hurt. "Now how are you going to get those b—"

She was cut off by the feeling of his lips pressed against hers. Her eyes closed, so caught up in the moment—still drunk on euphoria and laughter—that her mind was blissfully blank. There was this spark, like a current flowing between them, his lips soft and warm against her cool ones, and it was even better, so much better, than the first time. Her stomach was all tight, and she prayed that for once, her powers obey her wishes and to please behave in her excitement.

Then the moment passed, and she pulled away, thankfully coming back down to reality, the connection lost almost as quickly as it had begun. She could feel her cheeks burning and knew she must be bright red. Elsa turned so that she was facing forward once more rather than towards him, looking down at her hands that were resting in her lap so that she wouldn't have to look over at him. "Sorry. I can't."

"No, it was my fault. I was too bold," said Hans.

Elsa shook her head, feeling horrible but not going back on her words. It wasn't his fault. "No, that's... I mean, I know that the other night I, uh... it's just that I'm a mess right now, and I need to get my affairs in order before I drag you into it."

While there was something incredibly relieving about being impulsive for once in her life, she didn't want to be tugging Hans along by a thread when she didn't know what direction she was going anymore. She couldn't have that guilt weighing on her conscience.

"Well, being dragged into your business isn't nearly as bad as you seem to think it is."

She dared a glance at him, surprised he still had such an easy, perhaps understanding, smile. His words gave her a glimmer of home, but she couldn't allow herself to be hopeful.

Her smile in return was weak. "I had a really good time tonight." It always was a really good time with him. He had that effect on her. She turned away from him. "I, uh... we should probably go then."

He nodded. "Right."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, this is a pretty short chapter. The next one will hopefully be longer; I already have it planned, so I'm hoping it'll be a good one. And I know that Elsa's been pretty wishy-washy. She's just indecisive is all. Don't worry, she'll figure out what she wants.


	14. Anything and Everything

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't mean for it to escalate to this degree, but it happens. Also I'm considering changing the title of this fic, do you think I should? Just a heads up, I'm probably going to split the entire story into two parts.

Aside from the rooftops, the library was one of Elsa's favorite places to spend her time. A room dedicated completely to peace and quiet, with endless rows of books on shelves that reached all the way to the ceiling. In the center of the room was an array of furniture—a couple armchairs, tables, and a couch—where the light from a set of stained glass windows spilling upon the room in all colors, but rather than sit down comfortably she was lying on the slightly scratchy rug as she read her book. She didn't know why; she just felt compelled to for some odd reason. There was a click and the low creaking of a door opening accompanied by the sound of footsteps, but she didn't look away from her book.

"Hey, stranger," said a familiar voice. She peaked up over the top of her book to see a Hans grinning at her with his easy smile she knew so well.

Elsa grinned, setting her book down. "Shhhhh," she said putting a finger to her lips. "Im hiding," she mouthed. Part of her was happy to see him, but the more pragmatic but also more nervous part of her wanted to run.

"Oh, ok," he said, lowering his voice for her. "What for?"

"Not for any specific reason, it's just that with all the planning for the upcoming ball, everybody's been hounding me." She sat up, shifting her weight so that she was leaning against the bookcase. "I mean, micromanaging tends to makes me feel better because at least it gives me a sense of control, but even I have limits when I'm being asked to chose between two shades of tablecloth that are exactly the same."

"So then why're you lying on the floor?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, you know," she said, trying to sound nonchalant, "supposedly it's supposed to be really good for your back, so here I am."

_What was he doing here?_

He chuckled, sitting down beside her. "It's nice in here, even sitting on the floor."

She nodded. "I like the privacy," she said, sighing. "And the books. The roof is nice, but I prefer being out there when I can see the stars."

"You're still avoiding me," said Hans.

"I'm what? No, no, I'm not," she said, which wasn't true, but she shook her head fervently, as if being more forceful would somehow make her more convincing. She laughed, it coming out much more shrill than it normally would. "I've just been busy." A fortnight had passed since the starry rooftop night, and they hadn't spoken to one another since then, apart from when it pertained to business. Indeed, she had been busy—she always was—but like always, this was just her running away from her problems rather than facing them. She'd gotten quite good at that.

"Elsa, I saw you in the hallway the other day talking to Anna. As soon as you saw me, you turned and ran straight in the other direction."

She groaned, leaning her head back so that it rested against the bookshelves. "Right." So he had seen her. Anna had laughed at her afterwards.

"You're surprisingly fast in heels, by the way."

She would've laughed if it had been any other time than this. "Thanks. I see you're wearing gloves again," she said, nodding towards his hands, hoping this would derail the current direction the conversation was taking.

"You know, I do have more than one pair," he said with an amused grin, but no matter how easily they were able to banter back and forth, it didn't diffuse the tension in the air.

"Right, of course," she said, shaking her head. How could she be so stupid? She stood up abruptly, brushing off the skirt of her dress. "I'd better go, busy day."

He stood up as well. "Alright, well, I'll see you at the ball."

She smiled politely, wishing she was looking forward to it more than she really was. "Yeah," she said as she walked away from him. However, she couldn't bring herself to leave quite yet, still wracked with feelings of guilt. She owed him... something. "Sorry I kissed you, would've saved us all this trouble. Politics and dating don't really..." When she had reached the door, she turned to face him again, one hand still on the handle to the door. "It's, uh... It's a self-preservation kind of thing. You wouldn't understand."

And she was gone, leaving Hans standing there in the library alone. He let out a long sigh. His mind was going a million miles an hour, perplexed at what she possibly could have meant by all that. However, he knew she was wrong about one thing. He knew more about self-preservation than she could possibly know.

—

"Is it just me, or does the room seem to be getting smaller?" Elsa whispered to her sister while the two of them conversed with their guests. Perhaps it was her imagination, but she could have sworn the halls were the most crowded they had ever been, the noisy chatter taking up what little space there was left.

"If you didn't want to have to grin and bear it, you shouldn't have thrown a ball," Anna said back to her under her breath, not breaking her polite smile as they continued to talk. "You're not enjoying yourself?"

"The stress just always seems to be more than it's worth, but everyone else seems to have a good time. Besides," she added, "this was your idea."

"A brilliant idea," said Anna, to which Elsa rolled her eyes. "Have you seen Kristoff?"

"I thought he was with you," she said as she laughed at a joke that had just been told.

He definitely had been the last time she had seen him, but she was under the impression that he was at least somewhere nearby. Apparently this wasn't the case, which was surprising considering he spent most events such as this by Anna's side, needing some goading if he was to leave it.

"Do you see him anywhere near me?" said Anna, sounding disgruntled. She sighed. "He must be with Sven. Again."

"You don't know that. Maybe he's, you know, making friends," suggest Elsa, trying to sound optimistic. Her hopes weren't high; Anna was probably right, but she wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt.

Anna ignored her. "You'd think if he loved me he'd at least try to adapt to living here and being sociable and whatnot."

"He does," insisted Elsa, turning to look at her sister, who was frowning deeply to herself. "But you can't expect him to just change."

Any fool could simply look at Kristoff when he was with Anna and be able to tell that he was very in love with her. He just needed time and space. Elsa understood; she loved her alone time as well. It was a lot to take in and just being thrown into the royal environment so suddenly must not have been easy. She just wished stubborn, impatient Anna would understand.

"No, I know," said Anna, shaking her head, "I just..."

She smiled sympathetically. "Just be glad you're not the one being flocked by people trying to impress you in hopes that they'll be the lucky one to catch your attention."

Thankfully, Anna chuckled, her dark mood slightly alleviated.

"Who's trying to catch whose attention?"

The pair of them spun around to see a handsome young man with brown hair, bright blue eyes, and a charming smile standing before them. "Hi. Who's trying to catch whose attention?" He smiled a smile that could win any girls heart at the two young ladies, but he had eyes only for the snow queen.

"H-hello," stuttered Elsa, momentarily dumbfounded, her eyes widening.

Anna spoke up, answering his question. "My sister's. So many people have been so eager to introduce themselves to her, isn't that right, Elsa?" She snickered, and Elsa coughed and gave her sister a look, unable to do anything under the man's gaze. If Anna caught the look, she didn't acknowledge it.

"And you are?" asked Elsa, addressing the handsome stranger, at last gathering her composure and giving him a polite smile.

"Jackson." He held out his hand to shake. "Jackson Overland. It's an honor to meet you, Princess Anna, Queen Elsa." He shook hands with Anna—who for once was speechless—and kissed Elsa's hand.

She blushed then promptly shook her head, trying to pull herself together again. Get a grip. "The prince of Burgess, of course. Delighted to make your acquaintance, Prince Jackson."

"Please, call me Jack," he said, his smile never faltering. "Do you want to dance?"

"Pardon?" she asked, his question catching her off-guard. Surely she had misheard him. Anyhow, she didn't dance. At least not without the right partner. And definitely not at a public event such as this where she would be a spectacle for all to see. "I'm sorry, I don't—"

Anna cut her off. "Yes, she does."

"You do?"

_What was she doing?_

"No, I don't, I'm sorry."

"So you don't?"

"Yes, she does."

"I don't!" she addressed to Anna firmly. Elsa turned to Jack. "I'm sorry, I'd love to, but I don't dance."

"Don't take it personally, she never does," said Anna in an aside to Jack, who now was sporting an amused grin.

Elsa was about to protest when suddenly she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned and saw—to her surprise—familiar freckled face smiling at her.

"You look fantastic," said Hans, voice full of admiration.

Trying to ignore his lingering gaze, she looked him up and down. He was back in his white ensemble, looking picture perfect as always. "Thanks, so do you."

"I've never seen you in red before."

"Anna's idea. It's so vibrant; I stick out like a sore thumb," she said. No doubt that was her sister's intention. She had to admit the dress was beautiful; it had been a gift from Anna and tailored perfectly to the shape of her body. Nevertheless, the scarlett fabric and snug fit made her feel like she was calling too much attention to herself.

"But in a good way," he said, smiling at her. "Let's dance."

"Oh, I—"

Before she could protest, he took her hand, leading her onto the dance floor. Hans wrapped an arm around her waist, the other one reaching out and interlocking his fingers with hers, closing the distance between the two of them as he led her to the slow melody of the orchestra.

—

Jack and Anna watched the two of them from a distance as they swayed in time to the music.

"I thought you said she didn't dance," said Jack, amused smile on his lips.

"That's because she doesn't," said Anna, perplexed. "She just stands there or maybe talks to the guests. Not a single ball has she danced with anyone."

"Well, that must mean he's not just anyone," said Jack.

Anna silently agreed.

"Such a handsome man," he added, "I almost want to steal him for myself."

She sighed not taking her eyes off the beautiful couple as they took a turn about the room. "I know what you mean."

—

Perhaps it was just paranoia, but Elsa couldn't quite shake the feeling that they were being watched.

"Hans, what are you doing?" she asked him quietly, her voice barely audible, but she knew he could hear her. They were so close that they were practically cheek to cheek.

"Dancing," he said. "It's a common activity at balls, you should give it a try sometime."

"People are staring," she mumbled in his ear, ignoring the snark in his last remark. She could feel her face growing hot and her hands growing cold.

"Nobody's staring."

Out of the corner of her eye she could see Anna giggling at her. Ok, so maybe it was more than just paranoia that told her that she was being watched.

"You ok?" He pulled back slightly so that he could look her in the eye. "What's wrong?" He asked, green eyes looking at her with concern.

"Oh, nothing, nothing," she said, her voice a little too shrill. "It's just that I'm dancing. With you. In a scarlet dress for everyone to see, and you know how people are."

"How are people?"

He had the barest traces of an amused grin on his face. Why was he smiling? Didn't he get it?

"You're a prince, surely you must have some idea," she said in disbelief, unable to buy that he didn't at least have an inclination to what she meant. He must have been humoring her. "The rumors, the gossip."

"Hey, relax. It's just me, no big deal. Friends, remember?"

"Right," she said, taking a deep breath.

"How've you been?"

"Fine."

"So who was that?" he asked, letting go of her waist so that he could twirl her and then wind his arm around her once more.

"Who was who?" she asked even though she knew exactly who he was talking about. 

"The guy you were talking to."

"Just a guy. Why does it matter?"

"It doesn't."

"Uh-huh."

Perhaps it was just her imagination, but she could have sworn she could hear a trace of jealousy in his voice.

"You like him?"

He was trying to be nonchalant, and although his steps didn't falter, he seemed much stiffer than he usually was. Anyways, it was a completely ridiculous question.

"We just met! Anyways, Why is it any of your concern?"

"Just curious. Can't a person be curious?"

"Well, I don't want to talk about it."

They didn't speak. Relief coupled with paradoxical disappointment flowed through her, almost disappointed that he hadn't persisted but simultaneously glad that he had.

"Is it just me or is it hot in here?" asked Elsa, breaking the silence.

"No, I feel it, too," he said almost immediately, nodding in agreement. "Wanna step outside for a moment?"

"Yes," she said hastily, grateful for the suggestion.

They quickly let go of each other.

—

"Am I the only one who finds it odd how we somehow always end up out here?" asked Hans as the odd pair stood together on their balcony. He sat down on the ledge, watching her.

Elsa ignored his question. "What was that?" she demanded. Out of sight from all the her guests, she no longer had any qualms about breaking her cool facade. 

"What was what?"

"Oh, you know what I'm talking about," she said, her eyes narrowing. He was playing dumb; she could tell. 

Hans shrugged. "What's the big deal? I asked you to dance which in case you've forgotten, we've already done on several occasions before this."

He had a point, but she wasn't going to let it go that easily.

"What's the big deal?" she asked incredulously. "How's it going to look if I refuse all other invitations and then all of sudden I'm dancing with my sister's ex-fiancé?"

"Last time I checked, people can ask their friends for a dance."

"Yes, but what does it say about me?"

"It was harmless."

Elsa scoffed. "Harmless?"

"Yes, harmless. Will you quit acting like it means the end of the world?"

Allowing him to talk to her in that way was a feat in it of itself. Perhaps she was exaggerating, but how could he possibly be so blasé about the entire thing? "Well, it means a lot more than you seem to think it does, so I wish you'd start acting like it."

"That's rich coming from you," he mumbled, refusing to meet her eyes.

She couldn't believe her ears. "Excuse me?"

"You know what I'm talking about. You want to act like all those nights didn't mean anything and then get upset when I play along and try to be friends."

She was fuming. The air suddenly grew cold, the first traces of ice just starting to form along the balcony ledge, but her blood was boiling. "At least I'm not the one getting jealous over some random person you just met! Because that's something friends do, right?"

He laughed humorlessly. "You kissed me, remember?"

 _Ouch._ She fumbled for words, anything that could form a coherent sentence. "That wasn't... I mean, I... That didn't—"

"Mean anything? Clearly, because all that time spent didn't mean a thing to you," he retorted, the bitterness in his tone matching hers.

"I never said that. It means a lot. I just wish it wouldn't mean everything," she said quietly. She liked him, she really did, but she wasn't about to profess her undying love and ride off into the sunset with him anytime soon. 

He stood up and began making his way over to the door. "Well, if it didn't, you wouldn't be so eager to run off every time."

"I do not!" she said indignantly, but deep down she knew that he was right. Please don't leave...

To her surprise, he turned around to face her again. "You've been tiptoeing around the issue like it's just going to magically go away."

"I just need some time, ok? I'm busy."

"That's what you always say, but it's been three weeks and it feels like it's hanging in the air for forever."

"That's not forever! That's hardly anything!"

"I figured you'd at least be mature enough to dance with me by now."

"I like you, but there's a time and place for everything." He needed to understand that. 

"And by that I assume you mean late at night, hidden away so nobody sees you with me and gets the wrong idea?"

Hans came towards her again, but she stood her ground, refusing to back down.

"We both agreed it was a mistake."

"Did we?" He asked mockingly. "I'm sorry if the details are a bit fuzzy to me right now; it's been so long."

He was right up close to her now, their faces mere inches apart, and it wasn't until then that she realized just how tall he really was. Or how handsome, his features striking in the dim moonlight, green eyes dark and boring right into hers.

"You know," he added, "we wouldn't be in this situation if you didn't kiss me and then run for the hill every time you see me; I'm getting whiplash trying to figure out what you want from me."

His words stung like an open wound. "I don't want anything from you, Hans," she hissed, the ice climbing still further, icicles starting to grow from the surface, their points wicked sharp and glinting dangerously in the light. She could do just fine without him. She didn't have to take this crap.

"Well, that's fine by me!"

"Fine," she snapped.

"Fine."

"Fine," she said again, and there was a note of finality in her voice that he did not challenge. The ice stopped, icicles suspended in the cold air around them, their breath coming out in clouds. For a moment, neither of them moved; they just stood there, looking at each other with unreadable expressions. Finally beginning to realize what had just happened, Elsa bowed her head, unable to look at him. "Sorry," she mumbled, turning to leave, feeling ashamed and heartbroken as tears began to well up in her eyes, but she blinked them back. She wished she could take it all back right then, but there was no way in hell they could just brush aside an argument of that magnitude.

"Elsa."

"Yes?" She looked back at him, a small glimmer of hope in her eyes and in her heart, but she fought to keep it down. All she could do was wait for him speak.

He gave her a small smile, but his eyes were sad, and she could feel her heart breaking.

"You look really pretty tonight."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They're arguing, it must mean they're in looooove. Also I don't think I could continue writing Hans as such a passive Beta male for much longer, hence the outburst.
> 
> You guys will like next chapter, trust me.
> 
> Also about the familiar face we just got introduced to, I've been thinking of bring a bunch of those characters into the story, but they're going to be more prominent in the second part. Although they're going to be adapted more to fit the story which is why Frosty is a prince (Also you can see me accidently projecting my bi headcanons onto characters galore).


	15. Anything and Everything Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/n: Hopefully the fact that this chapter is really long is a good thing. I'm starting to realize that my writing is really dialogue-heavy. Feel free to use your imagination to picture how they're sitting in the last third or so of the chapter. Fun fact: in an ironic twist of fate, I'm an asexual who has a weakness for rom-coms. In other words, go watch Crazy Stupid Love because it is amazing, and because I am a derivative hack, and Jacob & Hannah remind me of Helsa so much (their scenes are the best part of the movie). I think Hans would also have calf-pants. I also highly recommend the song "I Can't Hear You" by The Dead Weathers.
> 
> Also, I swear I started writing this a week before this came out http://youtu.be/4OrNApgcB7o. That was weird.

Three months. Three months had gone by since Hans had returned to the Southern Isles, and not a single word had passed between the two of them. He'd left the day after the ball, all smiles and apologies to a disappointed Anna, and merely a curt nod to her. He was gone without so much as a goodbye. And while Elsa would never admit it to Anna, she secretly really missed the days when they had spent their time apart writing nonstop back and forth, back and forth.

Of course, Anna had convinced her to throw another ball. She had begged for a masquerade—"just this once, Elsa, you'll like it, oh please please. It'll be fun!"—and for some reason Elsa was compelled to agree. The things her sister could talk her into sometimes. Perhaps a small part of her believed she just needed a distraction, but while she was distracted, for the moment she was still waiting for the payoff to her decision.

"I can't believe you talked me into this," Elsa grumbled as the two of them greeted their guests.

"Oh, don't be so mopey," said Anna with a chipper smile as she shook hands. She donned a red mask trimmed in black that matched nicely with the color of her dress, her hair curled and styled in a neat little updo. "Things were getting way too dull around here."

"So this was your solution?"

"I figured it'd do you some good to get out again."

"And the best way to get me to meet people was to have everyone hide behind masks?" she asked, eyebrow raised behind her own ornate black mask. That really didn't have anything to do with her being disgruntled, she just needed an extra reason to pick on her sister. She wished she could argue that she had gotten out loads of times, but unfortunately Anna was right. She was a bit too reclusive for her own good, but as long as Anna was around she hardly noticed. Still, something had felt missing over the past couple months.

Anna shrugged in response. "It adds a level of excitement, don't you agree?"

"I suppose," she admitted, even if the concept was a little silly. "Even if it's not a truly practical way of hiding one's identity."

"Hey, you could at least give me a little credit and appreciation," said Anna. "You know if I hadn't proposed the idea, you'd still be locked away in your study working."

"Alright, alright," surrendered Elsa. She chuckled. "Point taken." At least it was a change of pace.

"You are going to have a great time tonight."

She sighed. "We'll see."

—

"Pssst," hissed Anna, trying to get her sister's attention.

Elsa turned around, looking at her expectantly. "What?"

Anna leaned in, and Elsa did so as well so that she could hear her sister over the idle chatter. "Cute guy that was at the last ball who asked you to dance is here," she said quietly, nudging her sister with her elbow.

"Who?" asked Elsa, blinking in confusion, racking her brain as she tried to recall this person that Anna was referring to. She vaguely remembered a face—it was hard to forget—but not a name.

"You know," said Anna impatiently. "Jack! Turn around, I'm looking straight at him."

Of course, Prince Jackson of Burgess, how could she forget?

"That's not very polite, Anna," said Elsa, chastising her younger sister, but allowing Anna to spin her around so that she could see him as well. Engaged in animated conversation with another guest, she could see that he was just as handsome as she remembered him to be, even with his upper face concealed by a light blue mask.

"So?"

Elsa scowled. She had forgotten momentarily about her sister's complete lack of tact. "So we want to be polite hosts if you ever want to do something like this again," she warned, although they were empty threats, and surely Anna knew that.

"You should dance with him!" said Anna excitedly. "He seemed to really like you."

"No thanks," said Elsa. "Im sworn off courting for the time being. And dancing, for that matter," she said with a grimace. As charming as she had found him, there was no point in engaging anything with him when he was going to be nothing more than a transitional person, a bandage. Handsome men would only lead to heartbreak.

"That bad of a break-up, huh?" asked Anna to her annoyance.

"It was not a break-up," she replied tersely. 

Anna rolled her eyes. "Right."

"It wasn't."  
For it to be a break-up, they would've had to actually be together. Kind of like how he and Anna were previously engaged. Between the two of them—the unlucky prince and the queen of the ice—and their nonexistent relationship, the turmoil surrounding their fallout had been greater than both Anna and his reaction to breaking the engagement.

Anna's question surprised her, taking her out of her reverie. "And he hasn't written you at all?"

She shook her head. "Not a word." Admittedly, she had considered on more than one occasion to be the first to break the silence and end the dry spell, but she couldn't stand the idea of being the first to give in. But, oh, how she missed the way he could alleviate her worries...

Anna frowned. "I think you need to get back out there."

"Oh, trust me, that's the last thing I need right now." Maybe this was how Anna felt when Elsa thought she knew what was best for everyone. Being on the receiving end of those assumptions was absolutely aggravating.

She pouted behind her mask. "But he's cute," she said, no doubt talking about Jackson.

"Anna, I can't," she said firmly. "I'm busy."

"Busy with what?"

"Running the country."

Anna wrinkled her nose in distaste. "Your life is so boring."

"What? No, it's not," said Elsa defensively, not appreciating the heavy scrutiny from a person younger than herself.

"Yes, it is."

"No, it's not!"

"Oh, it so is," said Anna.

"Says the girl in the committed relationship," snapped Elsa, her temper getting the better of her.

To her surprise, Anna held up her hands in defeat. "Fair enough."

"Listen, I am done with allowing my baby sister to dictate my love life."

"Or lack of one," said Anna smugly. Before Elsa could comment back to her, Anna called out to someone behind her sister. "Punzie! I can't believe I didn't see you, come here!"

A smiling Rapunzel approached them, looking very pretty in her purple mask the complimented her dress perfectly. Her chestnut brown hair seemed longer than it was before although it still remained a short bob. "Hi! It's so good to see you." She reached over, giving each of them a warm hug. "So sorry I couldn't make it out here last time."

"Oh, that's alright," said Anna, waving her arm carelessly. "How've you been?"

"Fantastic. Where's Kristoff?" inquired their cousin to her sister.

"Oh, he's around here somewhere, I made sure of that," said Anna. "You know what he's like. He's as outgoing as ever." The sarcasm in her voice was thick.

Elsa chimed in, coming to his defense. "He's just a little shy, that's all." However, she too was silently wondering where he had gone.

"I give it two hours before he disappears into the stable. Once that happens, I fear we may never see him again," said Anna.

Rapunzel put a hand on her cousin's shoulder, smiling sympathetically as she offered her words of wisdom. "Anna, if you ever feel embarrassed that your partner's best friend is a reindeer, just remind yourself that a horse was the best man at our wedding."

Elsa snorted while Anna burst into a fit of laughter.

The three girls continued to converse pleasantly, and Elsa was actually starting to relax and enjoy herself, her usual anxiety beginning to fade, at least for the time being. That was the nice thing about family; they made her feel more at home, and at the very least she could always count on them for a good laugh. Rapunzel was just in the middle of a story when she stopped mid-sentence, and Elsa noticed that her gaze must have been fixated on something.

"What is it?" asked Elsa curiously.

Rapunzel leaned in so that Elsa could hear her at a low volume. "Someone is staring at you over there to the right."

Curious to see who she could be talking about, she and Anna followed Rapunzel's line of sight. Standing there was a man with startling green eyes and floppy red hair, and features Elsa knew far too well hidden behind a small white mask. He turned away as soon as their eyes met, engaging himself in a conversation with a pretty brunette in a green dress that stood beside him, charming smile intact on his handsomely featured face.

Upon seeing him, the color drained from Elsa's face.

"Huh, whaddaya know," said Anna. "It's Prince Gingerhead. Guess he decided to show up after all."

She turned to Anna. "What's he doing here?" she hissed.

"I invited him," said Anna matter-of-factly.

"Why?" demanded Elsa, trying and failing not to sound completely hysterical.

"Hold on," Rapunzel interjected, "I'm playing catch-up here. Who is this person?"

"He's nobody," said Elsa, but Anna quickly interrupted her.

"Hans Westerguard, Prince of the Southern Isles."

"That's him?" asked Rapunzel with a look of wide-eyed disbelief, staring at him in awe, much to Elsa's displeasure. How her cousin knew who he was simply by name escaped her, but she had a feeling Anna had something to do with it.

Anna nodded. "I know, right?" she said with a small laugh.

"You told her about him?" cried Elsa, who was now red with embarrassment, her cheeks now the exact same shade of red as Anna's dress.

"Relax, what could I possibly have told her? You won't even tell me anything," said Anna.

Elsa ignored that last bit. "Will you guys stop staring at him?" she said, turning away so that she wouldn't have to look at him. She couldn't help but worry that he would catch them looking over at him, or worse, that he would catch her looking over at him.

They ignored her. "He's cute," said Rapunzel.

"You think so?" asked Elsa despite her better judgement, chancing a peak at him at him again over her shoulder. Anna giggled. Realizing her mistake a second too late, Elsa shook her head, mentally cursing herself. "Anyways, it doesn't matter. We're not speaking."

"Well, what happened?" asked Rapunzel eagerly with probing eyes.

Once again, Anna replied before Elsa could say anything. "A 'what are we' talk gone wrong. In short, she got upset because she has a fear of commitment—"

"I do not!"

"—and he felt that she didn't give a damn about him."

"Awww, It's just like in the stories," said Rapunzel.

"What are you talking about?" asked a thoroughly perplexed Elsa.

"You know," said Anna with a mischievous glint in her eye, "the couple has a misunderstanding—"

Rapunzel chimed in. "And then they fight, and they're just so angry they refuse to speak to each other—"

"—And then they fall madly in love."

Elsa rolled her eyes. She said, "You guys read too many fairy tales," to which they replied with more giggling.  
They were daft for thinking things ever turned out the way they did in the storybooks. It was a romantic notion, but certainly not realistic, and it certainly did not apply to herself and Hans. Besides, couples in fairy tales were always the good guys, the heroes, not the monsters or witches.

Despite her scathing comment towards the two girls, she couldn't help but turn around to look at him again. He was still talking to the girl; seeing the two of them smiling and laughing caused jealousy to flow through her, making her face grow hot.

"She's pretty," said Anna, who was still watching them.

"Yeah." Elsa folded her arms against her chest, furrowing her brow. There was no argument about that; she was very pretty. "Does he look different to you?" she asked, scrutinizing him more closely. 

"What do you mean?" asked Anna.

"Something about him seems off, right?" It couldn't be just her. She was sure something about him was strange. 

"I've never seen him before," said Rapunzel.

"I'm telling you, something's different. It's his sideburns, they're longer than before," said Elsa.

Anna frowned contemplatively. "Huh."

"Hey girls."

The three of them turned around to see Eugene standing before them, all dressed up and wearing a winning smile.

"Hey!" said Anna, grinning broadly at her in-law.

Elsa nodded at smiled at him, secretly grateful at his intervention.

"Sweetheart! You startled me," said Rapunzel.

He kissed her on the cheek, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "Sorry about that. So what are we talking about?"

"Elsa's romantic dead-ends," said Anna.

"Is this referring to the ex-fiancé?" Eugene asked, looking to Rapunzel for the answer.

"That would be the one."

Elsa couldn't believe her ears. "Seriously? You, too?"

He shrugged.

"Is there anyone who doesn't know about this?" she asked Anna.

"Sorry!" said Anna with a guilty smile, but it would take a lot more than a single apology to appease Elsa's anger. "I kept it in the family, I swear," she said, as if that made it ok.

"Ugh."

Probably sensing the tension developing in the air, Eugene turned to Rapunzel again. "Wanna dance?" he asked her hastily.

"Do I?" she said with an enticing grin as she tugged him onto the dance floor by the lapels of his coat, leaving a fuming Elsa alone with a very guilty-looking Anna.

Elsa continued to socialize with the guests out of politeness, but the sudden downward turn of events had left her in a sour mood. On top of that, Anna had managed to talk her into taking up dancing if anyone offered, and it was not going well.

"I blame you," said Elsa, scowling at her sister as she thanked and parted with yet another dance partner.

Anna shrugged. "Got you dancing though, didn't I?"

Elsa shook her head dismissively. "You know I'm not a very good dancer. And honestly, neither are any of these men, really."

Anna giggled, waving at her as she was dragged onto the dance floor yet again by another overly enthusiastic partner. Remembering her coronation night, Elsa grimaced at the ironic reversal of fortune.

Still, she managed to smile her way through what felt like a long evening, even if her dance partners where a little too rough and all attempts to make her laugh where trying a little too hard. No doubt they were hoping to curry favor with her so that they could be a potential suitor. Luckily, after having a drink she did manage to ease up a bit, as well as ignore every time someone would step on her toes. She only wished it could also make her forget how dancing with Hans had seemed so effortless that she felt practically weightless.

She was feigning laughter for what felt like the thousandth time at a joke that had just been told when she turned to Anna, muttering so that only she could hear, "I can't do this."

"You have to, you're the host," said Anna through her teeth as she forced a smile.

Elsa groaned, knowing her long night was far from over.

—

There were a number of pretty girls in the room, and perhaps if it had been many months ago he would have tried to charm one of them, rather than fret over the one who made his heart feel like a shipwreck. He'd seen her run from the room—slipping past all the guests, retreating into the shadows, somehow gone completely unnoticed—and perhaps if it had been three months ago, he would have let her go, telling himself to just give her some space. And if he didn't happen to look up just at the opportune moment—be it by luck, chance, or fate—perhaps he wouldn't have gone after her this time, rather than wait around. But he did.

He had lost sight of her in the dark hallways of the castle—far enough from the ballroom that they were no longer lit—but something told him he would know where she would be.

Unfortunately, he hadn't planned on what exactly he would say once he found her, so when he did—in the castle library, just as he had predicted—he was quite unprepared. She'd turned to face the door as soon as it had swung open, and he could see the surprise on her face—her blue eyes striking behind the dark mask. The dim starlight poured through the stained glass windows, the colors still beautiful even in darkness as they cloaked her in their tinted light.

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Hans took a deep breath. He wasn't one to back down first, but for her, for that rush and weak-kneed feeling and just the sound of her voice, he would. "Listen, I'm sorry about—"

But he never got to finish his sentence because before he knew it, she was kissing him so fiercely his balance was nearly thrown, his face cupped in her hands that were always a little too cold, and any attempts at words were lost on the tip of his tongue. He couldn't think; he was too enveloped in her scent, and her soft lips, and the feeling of her hands running through his hair that he didn't even mind when she roughly pinned him against up against the bookcases. His arms instinctively moved to wrap themselves around her waist, pulling her closer to him, her feet barely touching the ground.

Her lips parted, and she pulled back just long enough for her to whisper, "Do me a favor and make me forget where I am tonight," her lips barely brushing against his as he felt her cool breath as she exhaled against him, driving him mad with desire, but he had to pull himself together enough to speak.

"Just three months ago you wouldn't even let me dance with you. What's changed?" It wasn't until then that he realized he was breathing heavily, his heart hammering in his chest, still more than a little dizzy.

"I realized I was taking for granted what a good dancer you were," she said, and he could see a wicked glint in her eye, their lips so close they were almost touching, and he realized that she was breathless as well. Her lips twitched in a smile. "You do still want me, right?" She kissed him again, this time short and sweet and lingering as his eyes closed, and he could feel her long thin fingers slipping his mask off his face.

He barely managed to breathe out, "Oh, God. _Yes_ ," in response, _please yes_ , but how he did when all he could think about was her body against his and the feeling of her teeth grazing his neck was a mystery to even himself. How was that even a question that needed answering?

Elsa smirked. "Let's go," she whispered in his ear, her voice low and alluring.

He set her down carefully, letting go of her waist to remove her mask so that he could clearly see her face. She was even more stunning in person than she had been in his memories.

"So you're just going to use this poor fool and then run off again?" he asked, but his tone was one of amusement. In that moment, he didn't care what she wanted him for or what it meant for the two of them. His newly wakened heart had not been treated with care, but he wanted to get shaken up a bit. He didn't want her to be gentle with his heart or with any other part of him, for that matter.

Much to his pleasure, she laughed, rolling her eyes, and he was certain that he'd never heard a better sound in the entire world as she slipped her hand in his, fingers interlocked, a perfect fit. "Come on, fool," she said, leading him along as he willfully obliged. He'd never been more happy to be a fool.

—

By the time the two of them had reached Elsa's bedroom, the sexual tension had somewhat dissipated. They sat down next to each other on the edge of her bed, Hans looking around her room, not speaking.

Elsa bit her lip. "How does this usually work?" Her initial confidence high having worn off by then, she was now acutely aware of her pounding heart. Even though it was silly, she worried he could hear it as well. She blamed her bravery back in the library on the fact that she had been annoyed and perhaps slightly buzzed as well as doing her best to be dramatic, but now that she could think clearly she was at a loss.

He grinned at her, trying suppress laughter. "Hey, this was your idea."

She scowled. "I know, but just... I don't know, can't you guide me through it?" She wished he wouldn't make fun of her. It wasn't easy for her to reveal her naïveté in such situations even if it was obvious to assume she was inexperienced.

"You seemed to know what you were doing earlier."

"Kiss me." They had to start somewhere, and she quite liked the feeling of his warm lips against hers.

He raised his eyebrows at her skeptically.

"Just kiss me."

He leaned in, placing a soft kiss to her lips, surprisingly gentle and sweet as he reached over and cupped her face in his hands, no longer hidden behind gloves, they were calloused and strong. It was perfect and exactly what she needed. Elsa closed her eyes, leaning into him as she wound her arms loosely around his neck, the feeling so natural that it was if she barely had to think on it. His hands slipped down to touch the small of her back, strong arms winding around her waist to hold her once more, pulling her close. Despite his strength he was gentle with her, not wanting to push her too far. A part of her was grateful at his restraint, but if the way he had picked her up with such ease back in the library was any indication to what he could do, she knew she wanted more than just gentle from him.

Emboldened by his arms around her waist, Elsa gasped, moving so that she was now on top of him, her legs straddling his hips. He let go of her long enough for her to peel off his coat in one swift movement, the fabric rustling as she tossed it aside, not caring where it ended up as long as it was no longer on him.

Her heart racing, she pulled away from him and sat up, taking a deep shuddering breath and trying to pull herself together. 

He held her by the hands. "You're shaking," said Hans, voice full of concern.

"I'm very nervous," she admitted with an embarrassed smile, glad the darkness could hide her red face. No matter how badly she wanted it, it didn't stop her nerves from getting to her. In fact, the anticipation merely added to it. She just wished she would stop shaking even as she could feel the butterflies in her stomach. At least her powers hadn't acted up, something she was very surprised at, but there was nothing beyond the room's chill. Well, nothing besides that so far.

"We can stop if you want," said Hans.

"No."

"Oh?" He leaned back on his hands staring at her with an amused grin.

"I know there's probably a boring version of tonight with old Elsa where I change mind and we sit here and talk until I fall asleep and then you cover me with a blanket and kiss me on the forehead and nothing happens," said Elsa, the words tumbling from her mouth before she could stop them, "But I'm telling you that's not what's going to happen." She'd been teased far too much and trodden on far too many times that night for her to even dream of going back in that ballroom. She wanted a real dancer. And she was resolved that tonight he would make her forget where she was and what a terrible night she was having, and hopefully even her name as well. For some reason, he was still looking at her with that amused grin. "What are you smiling at?" she asked, mystified, unable to comprehend what exactly was so funny.

"Nothing," he said, putting on a serious face, but she could see that he was suppressing a smile.

"Stop laughing at me."

"I'm not."

"Yes, you are. Will you please listen to me? I'm trying to tell you something. Come here."

"But I'm already here."

"Come closer, I have something important to tell you," said Elsa, beckoning him to come nearer

He leaned in closer to her, still grinning at her. "What is it?" he asked, looking at her expectantly, green eyes crinkled in a smile. Their noses were almost touching.

"Well..." She kissed him again, and she could feel his smile on her lips as her fingers fumbled as she struggled to undo the buttons on his shirt.

He chuckled quietly, his warm breath tickling her skin as he helped her with her endeavor, his shirt shortly joining his jacket to create a pile on the floor. Her eyes closed, she got lost in the sensation of his hands running through her hair as he leaned back, placing her hands on his lean chest as she leaned in with him.

He hissed quietly, and she quickly pulled back from him and sat up again. Oh god, if she'd hurt him...

"Your hands are cold," said Hans.

Elsa bit her lip, smiling apologetically. "Sorry." Thank goodness that was all it was, but she was still horribly embarrassed. She blushed, trying not to stare at his abs.

He shrugged. "No, it's fine."

Still flustered, Elsa was grateful when he leaned in and kissed her again, trying to get back into the rhythm of things. The two of them slowly eased their way up so that they no longer sat at the foot of the bed, Hans laying down with Elsa on top of him, his hands still resting on her waist. His lips roamed along her collarbone and along her neck, loving the feeling as they trailed her jawline and bit lightly at her earlobe. His sideburns brushed against her cheeks, pulling her out of the moment, and she giggled before she could help herself.

"That tickles." Realizing she had interrupted him, she hastily added. "Sorry, sorry. Please, continue."

They kissed again, his hand caressing her face softly. A thought occurred to her, nagging her in the back of her mind, and she fought to suppress it, but it just wouldn't go away.

"Have you ever had a beard?" she asked when their lips broke apart.

Hans paused what he was doing, sinking back down into the sheets. He didn't say anything, but for Elsa, that was answer enough.

"Oh my god."

"No."

"Don't lie."

"No," he said again, a poor last attempt at trying to sound convincing.

"You are such a liar," she said, laughing, all previous thoughts gone in an instant with her disbelief and amusement.

He cracked a grin. "Ok fine, yes, but I can explain myself."

"Oh, really?"

"No," he admitted, and Elsa laughed even harder. "I really can't. I wish I could, but no."

"I can't believe this. No, actually I can."

"I looked like Victor."

"Who?" asked Elsa. Neither of them had moved from their positions.

"My second oldest brother."

"Are all your family redheads?" she asked curiously.

"Not all of them."

"How many then?"

"Five, including me. Six including my mother."

"What are they like?" asked Elsa, fascinated.

"My family?"

She nodded, eager and curious to know more. Despite all that time together, she barely knew about his brothers, aside from a name or two. 

"Elsa, if I went over every single one we'd be here all night."

Fair enough. "Just their names then." She figured he could at least do that much.

"Klaus, Victor, Nikolaus, Fredbjørn, Alexander, Andrew, Damien, Derek, Grant, William, Linus, and Robert," he recited with perfect rhythm, as though he'd said it so many times that he knew the list by heart.

Elsa gaped at him in awe. "Do it again."

"Klaus, Victor, Nikolaus, Fredbjørn, Alexander, Andrew, Damien, Derek, Grant, William, Linus, and Robert."

"Backwards?"

"Well, I don't know if I—Robert, Linus, William, Grant, Derek, Damien, Andrew, Alexander, Fredbjørn, Nikolaus, Victor, and Klaus," he said without missing a single beat.

"And Hans," she added. If her arms would have allowed her, she would've applauded him right there. She wondered how many times he'd have repeated those names in order to read them off so effortlessly.

He chuckled. "And Hans."

"Which one is your favorite?"

"You're not supposed to have favorites!"

"Well, how was I supposed to know that?" she cried defensively. She hadn't exactly grown up in an environment that allowed her to have a favorite sibling, Anna being her one and only. 

"Alright, I'll cut you some slack since you only have one sibling."

"Oh, how very noble of you," she said through her laughter, rolling over so that she lay next to him. "But let's say you had to choose a favorite, who would it be?"

Hans shook his head. "They're all screwed. Anna's lucky she has you."

Elsa nodded solemnly. She certainly hadn't expected that answer. Twelve brothers and he wouldn't chose a single one? "Well, I'm lucky I have her, too... I can't imagine what it would be like to have so many brothers," she mused. She could barely handle one sister. As caring and adorable Anna was, she could be quite a handful. Then again, if she had had twelve older brothers, wouldn't that make her the handful instead, being the youngest and all? She didn't know how well she would be able to handle the rowdiness of men. "What's it like?"

"Loud," he answered without hesitation. "At least, it's loud when we're all together, but we're never together, so I guess it really doesn't really matter."

/

As they continued to talk into the late hours of the night, Elsa began to lose track of the time the more enraptured she got into the conversation. It wasn't until now—the two of them talking back and fourth about anything and everything as they lay there on the mattress together laughing as though no time had passed, old arguments completely forgotten—that it finally hit her full force how much she had really missed him.

They had been so childish and petty—both of them, so enveloped in pride and fear. Right now he was happy, and she was happy, what was the point in trying to deny that? What was the point in trying to prevent things from taking their course?

"You're wrong," said Elsa, unrelenting as the two of them got into minor disagreement about a book, their book.

"I'm just saying—"

"No, you're wrong."

"Hear me out, ok?"

"No, I'm telling you, it's satirical; that's where the humor comes from, and it's the best part of the entire story."

"Ok, I see where you're coming from, and that's your opinion, but—"

"It's true, and you know it."

"I'm telling you, it's better if you read it straight."

"And I'm telling you, you're wrong."

"Agree to disagree?"

"Fine. But you do at least agree that keeping him alive was a mistake when he was clearly capable of inciting war?"

He chuckled, rolling his eyes. "Agreed."

/

"Do you play any instruments?" asked Elsa.

"I did. When I was younger."

"What kind?"

"The violin."

"Any good?"

He shook his head. "No, not at all."

"Bullshit. There is nothing Hans Westerguard can't do."

"Besides ice skate."

"Touché."

"I wasn't exactly a very disciplined violinist."

"What an embarrassment you must be."

"Poor ice skater and a mediocre violinist? I'm a laughing stock."

She snorted loudly, embarrassing herself profusely, but he seemed to pay it no mind as he was laughing as well.

/

"Sometimes I dream about the night I ran away. It starts off really light actually, I mean at first it's kind of liberating, and I'm running and running, and I feel this rush as I raise an entire castle from the ground with my bare hands. And I feel limitless and free like I can do anything, you know?" She frowned. "Then the doors close behind me, and the dream turns into a nightmare when I realize that I'm standing there, completely alone."  
She'd never told anyone about that before. Her duty to protect the people she cared about always overshadowed her desire for freedom, but in her subconscious, she knew the desire would never truly go away. In that moment, she was completely vulnerable. He didn't speak, just listened as he watched her, but that was all she really needed: a good listening ear.

/

"—And I cried and cried and I told my parents that I wouldn't stop until they turned the ship around."

"And they did it?" he asked in disbelief.

"Yes, they did."

"Wow, you sound like a bit of a brat."

"I was five!"

"So, you're afraid of boats?"

"Terrified."

She still was. Her parent's accident had only managed to intensify and reaffirm her fears, and she dreaded the day she would ever have to get back on a ship. She knew that day would come sooner or later. She was anxious about a lot of things, but this particular fear she hated because it inhibited her from going out and seeing the rest of the world, holding back that yearning for freedom, and, hell, just stopping her from making basic business trips.

"Seasickness?"

"No, actually it's, um... I can't swim." It sounded silly when she put it like that, but she didn't want to ruin the mood. In reality, she wasn't afraid of swimming, she was afraid of drowning or the possibility of something much worse. Who knows what could happen with her magic?

"No way. You're kidding."

"Honest. I've never tried."

"I could show you."

"Oh no, that's ok."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, see, I have this fear of falling into the water and it freezing over on me. It's stupid, I know."

"That's not stupid."

"Thanks."

It went quiet.

"So you really cried?" he asked, suppressing a smile.

"It's not funny."

He raised his eyebrows at her.

"Ok, it's a little funny."

/

"A year."

"Six months," replied Hans.

"No way. That's way too soon."

"And a year is much better?"

"Plus, he's way too shy," added Elsa. "And they haven't even known each other that long. I say give it a year."

"It's not about how much time you spend together, it's the quality of the time you do have that counts."

"I can't believe I forgot I'm talking to the man who proposed after knowing her for one evening."

"I still say he'll propose to her within six months."

"Wanna bet?"

"Take me out for a drink?"

"No, you're taking me out."

/

"Elsa, Can I ask you a question?"

"Mm? Yeah, go ahead."

"This may seem kind of strange, and you don't have to answer if you don't want to—"

"What is it?" She rolled over from her back to her side so that she could look at him, her expression curious.

"Were your parents happy?"

His question surprised her, but she didn't find it strange. "Yeah. At least..." She frowned. "At least I think so... from what I could tell, anyway." Perhaps there was more to them than she had seen—particularly in the later years when she had been hidden away in her room, although she was much younger no doubt she hadn't been perceptive enough to see everything. But on the outside they always seemed happy.

"Do you think they would have stayed that way?"

"Um... I don't know. I mean, I would hope so."

The only thing that would've ruined it would be me and my magic.

"What were they like?"

"Kind of quiet. Sweet. My mother, God rest her, was always kind of timid. A little nervous but kind, too." She remembered when she was a kid, people would always say that she looked just like her mother, despite her light hair.

"And you spent a lot of time with her?"

"Only when I was really young. I actually liked being with my dad more, though. He was always the more playful of the two. Not to mention, later when the, um... you know, happened, I always kind of got the impression that she was afraid of me. Not that she would ever say it. I mean, she still loved me, but she was just... scared."

"You like your dad better than your mom?"

"I thought you weren't supposed to have favorites."

"You're not. But let's say, if you had to choose."

"Um... Well, if I really had to choose... Then, yeah. I'd pick him." She felt guilty admitting it, but knowing it was in his confidence make her feel slightly better. She sighed, rolling onto her back once more. "But what about you? What are your folks like?" Even with the barest information she had learned about his brothers, she knew even less about the king and queen.

"Well, they disagree on everything, and they're almost never in the same room if they can help it. They got married really young, and I'm pretty sure there was a time when they really did love each other."

"But?"

"But that was a long time ago. You know, before the thirteen kids. My mother was—is—very beautiful. Green eyes like mine. Very smart. She could be charming if she really wanted to, but she always seemed kind of cold. Kind of distant. Very vain. Not very good with children, so she handed me off to the nurse as soon as she could, and then after that it was off to the navy for me."

"Nurse?"

"Yeah, she was this shrewd old woman with horn-rimmed glasses and eyes like death who scolded me if I didn't behave and sit still and attend to my lessons like a good little boy. Admittedly, she was probably the only person who really cared about my well-being, but being the rambunctious kid that I was that was always in some sort of trouble, naturally I hated her."

"And your dad?"

"He's probably the most kind-hearted person I've ever known, so of course he and my mother must have been doomed from the start. And my dad couldn't really handle her, so eventually... he just stopped trying, I guess."

"So you like him better than your mother? Not that you're supposed to have favorites," she added quickly, "... but if you could?"

He shook his head.

"No?" She said, sitting up and looking at him in astonishment. After all that talk, calling her vain and cold, he still preferred her? It made no sense.

"I loved her. I mean, I don't really know why because she wasn't exactly what I would call affectionate, but I did. I think I admired how strong she was, you know?"

Elsa nodded. She'd felt the same about her own father.

"He just became neglectful. Which honestly probably hurt worse than it did with my mother because, well, that's just the way she is already..." He looked over at her to see her looking at him with a sympathetic look in her eye, head resting on her hand. "Am I boring you?"

"No, not at all."

/

Elsa didn't speak, she just listened intently as he talked and talked for what must have been forever but felt like no time at all. It as almost soothing, the sound of his voice, as though just hearing it alone could lull her to sleep, and it probably would have if Hans hadn't fallen asleep first. And when his rolling monologue turned to the sound of slow, peaceful breathing, she carefully covered him with a blanket, kissed him on the cheek, and curled up beside him, and eventually she, too, fell into a deep, peaceful sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Names/personalities of the brothers come from the headcanons of emmasdisneyworld. Also, I have strangely specific headcanons in regards to Hans' family, particularly when it comes to his mother. While I like the headcanon that she was pretty much the only source of affection in his life & that she died, I firmly believe in cold Mama Westerguard, and Hans still completely being a Mama's boy regardless of this (While Elsa is totally a Daddy's girl). It's because they're alike. (Coincidentally, Jacob's parents are nearly exactly how I headcanon Hans' parents. Seriously, watch that movie.) Also let's face it, I know people will disagree with me, but we all know Elsa tops. Not that anything actually happened. But she does.


	16. Rain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is so late, but I took like a week long break from writing. Hope you enjoy!

"And did you see the way he looked at her? I'm telling you, they'll be back together by the morning, just as I predicted. And you thought it was a bad idea; am I genius or what?" said Anna, practically bouncing up and down on her bed in excitement. She couldn't suppress her giddiness; everything was working out just the way she had foreseen, and it was all thanks to her. She hadn't even minded having to be the only host after Elsa and Hans had mysteriously gone missing in the later hours of the evening.

"Calm down," said Kristoff from where he sat beside her. "Besides, you know I don't doubt your skills at matchmaking, I merely question your methods is all."

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Anna indignantly. At last she calmed down, curling up beside him and pulling the covers up over herself, but that didn't stop her from looking crossly at him.

"You're meddlesome."

"So?" she demanded. "You and I both know Elsa was acting far too distant towards him, he was going to grow weary and run off. And guess what? That's pretty much exactly what happened." However Kristoff felt about the matter, she knew that she was right about this. She was the one who knew her sister, and her sister definitely needed the extra push.

"She's just cautious and shy, you should know that better than anyone."

"Yeah, but I know that because I'm her sister, and I know what she's like. They just needed a gentle nudge in the right direction, that's all."

He sighed. "Alright, I just think it's a little strange that you're trying to set up your sister with your ex fiancé, that's all."

"I think they're a good match," said Anna as though that explained everything.

He gave her a look, which she ignored, lying down so that she would not have to look him in the eye.

"That's not—" he began, but she cut him off before he could finish.

"I do, I think they're very well suited for each other," she insisted, much more forcefully this time.

"You feel guilty."

"What? No, of course not." She wasn't surprised that he had been able to detect her true motivation, but all the same it didn't stop her from trying to deny it. After all, it wasn't like guilt was her only reason. She rolled onto her side, hoping he would drop the issue, but he persisted.

"You do, you feel guilty because you dumped him and because you're in a relationship and she's not."

"I'm telling you, that's not why—"

"That's at least part of the reason."

"Ok, fine," she snapped, bitter at having to admit defeat. "But I do think they'd be good for each other."

He sighed. "Sure."

"I mean, they're awfully similar, don't you think?" she asked. She hoped that he would back her up so that she could be reassured that their similarities weren't just a part of her imagination or projected from her feelings of guilt.

She heard a loud yawn. "Mhm."

"Are you even listening to me?"

"Whatever you say, Dear," mumbled Kristoff, and she knew he must have been drifting off to sleep.

She rolled her eyes, turning over and kissing him on the cheek. "Goodnight, Kristoff."

"G'night, Anna."

—

Hans woke to the quiet tap of the rain against the windowpanes. In his groggy state he could barely make out his surroundings, but he could feel a slight pressure on his side, and when he could finally see clearly, there was just a split second when he didn't recognize where he was. Memories of the previous night flooded back to him all at once. Elsa was fast asleep, her head resting upon his shoulder. One leg was draped leisurely over his, dress hiked up to above the knee, her feet barely poking out from beneath the covers. What a difference it made, seeing her with all her worries alleviated. He'd never seen her look more peaceful.

Hans carefully tried to sit up without waking her. She groaned, turning away and curling up into a ball beside him, shivering slightly as the blanket slipped, exposing her to the open air. Looking at her, he could see that she no longer looked quite so restful as she had a moment ago; her mouth was turned down in a slight frown, her eyebrows furrowed, the little crinkle between them visible just above her nose, a sight that usually only appeared when she was worried or anxious, which admittedly was often. For a snow queen, she looked surprisingly cold, huddled into a little ball, still wearing her now poor wrinkled dress from the night before. She hadn't even taken it off.

In an act of sympathy, he pulled the covers back over her once more. Elsa's expression relaxed, and he smiled, leaning down and placing a kiss on her forehead.

To his surprise, she stirred, smiling, eyes still closed. "Morning to you, too."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you," he said, but he was surprised by such a warm greeting. Would she still be happy when she came fully to her senses? Ignorance was a blissful thing.

Elsa shook her head, eyes still closed. "S'fine," she said, her voice still thick with sleep. She turned so that she was faced towards him again, rubbing at her eyes until they fluttered open.

His gaze fell on the tangled mess that was Elsa's silvery blonde hair. It had fallen out of its familiar braid during the night and was currently wild and unkempt. "Nice hair," he commented, grinning at her.

"Oh, that's nothing," she said groggily as she stretched her arms, letting out a yawn. "You should see Anna's."

"It looks like a rat's nest," he added before he could stop himself, but in his head he was already picturing what he imagined Anna to look like first thing in the morning. If truth be told, he believed Elsa when she said that her hair was nothing compared to her younger sister's. 

"Rude," she said, scowling at him in annoyance, but he could see that she remained unoffended as she was fighting back a smile.

"Sorry, just a regular nest, then," he said, amending his previous statement. Elsa laughed, grabbing the nearest pillow and throwing it at him, hitting him full in the face. "Hey!"

"Take it back!" she cried, sitting up immediately and grabbing another pillow, but he instinctively caught her arms by the wrists, and she giggled as she struggled to break free from his grasp.

"Not a chance," he replied, and in one swift movement he had her pinned against the mattress so that she lay upon her back. Elsa stopped struggling. He smirked, and she smiled pleasantly up at him, her hair still as disheveled as ever. They were so close...

And then she kissed him, short and sweet and surprising, her lips soft against his and for a moment he was lost, everything forgotten. How she still hadn't disappeared by then, just as she always did, was a mystery to him. Instead, she was here with him again, after so being apart for so long.

When their lips parted, he could see she had an amused smirk on her lips. "Why are you looking at me like that?" asked Hans.

"No reason, I just want you to feel like you're doing well."

"What are you—"

But he never got to finish his sentence because she pulled him into another kiss, making him go dizzy. He let go of her wrists, rolling over so that he lay beside her, their legs intertwined in a tangled mess. She pulled away so that their faces were barely inches apart each other, the light framing her face just right.

"You know what I've always wanted to do?" she asked him in hushed tones, broad grin on her face.

"What?" he whispered, grinning back at her, her smile infectious in the best way possible.

"Stay in bed all day long," said Elsa, sounding wistful. "No conferences, no paperwork, nothing, for the entire day." Her eyes shone bright at the prospect, and he wondered just how long it had been since she had had a day to herself.

He mock-gasped. "And spend a day entirely on yourself? How indulgent, I didn't think it possible."

Elsa laughed quietly. "Do you think if I wish hard enough, we can just stay like this, you and I? For the whole day? And everything else can just disappear, just for a little while." She bit her lip.

"You could give it a try," he said, trying to sound casual and playful even though at the moment nothing in the world sounded better to him than to simply spend the entire day with her. At least, until something came up because something always came up.

"And if at any point I try to change my mind, promise you'll stop me because I'm determined to spend the entire day doing nothing at all." She gave him an expectant look.

He chuckled amiably. "I promise," he said, leaning in and pressing a chaste kiss to her forehead. The intimacy was strange, even after last night, but felt oddly natural. This was something partners did for each other, wasn't it? Kiss each other's foreheads? Not that they were decidedly together, but she no longer seemed to have a problem with their closeness.

Elsa smiled for just a moment, then her expression became somber. "Will you stay with me?" she asked earnestly.

"I'm here, aren't I?" replied Hans, perplexed at the question but doing his best to reassure her. He took her hand, her long, thin fingers intertwined with his. The touch of another person on his typically gloved hands felt foreign to him; he caressed her hand with his thumb, trying to memorize the sensation of her cool skin against his.

"No, I mean..." she continued, and he could feel her piercing blue eyes boring into his green ones, "Will you stay here, in Arandelle?"

"You want me to stay?" he asked in surprise.

"Yeah, I do," she said, and she leaned in closer to him, closing the distance between them so that their foreheads were touching, her content smile mirroring his.

"I hadn't exactly planned on it," he teased as they drew nearer to each other, their lips almost touching. But he knew he wouldn't turn her down.

"I'll take care of everything, I promise," she whispered, barest traces of a grin on her lips.

"Well, I think we can work something out," he said as her lips brushed up against his. He closed his eyes, his hands running through her hair as he pulled her deeper into the kiss.

She pulled back.

"What is it?"

She had the crinkle between her eyebrows again, just above her nose. "Actually I just remembered, I promised Anna I would..." She began to sit up, but paused, stopping mid-sentence. "You know what?" She shook her head, lying back down and smiling at him. "It can wait."

"You sure?"

"Definitely."

They didn't speak; they just sat there, enjoying the warmth of the bed as they listened to the sound of the rain. Time passed slowly, or perhaps not at all, and for a moment he was almost able to believe that the world had disappeared and it was just the two of them, just as she had wanted it.

Elsa spoke up. "You know, I wish..." she began, but Hans never got to hear what that was, because she tensed, eyes wide and suddenly alert for whatever reason.

"What?" he asked, unsure whether he had upset her in some way.

She shushed him. "Someone's at the door," she whispered.

"Oh?" he asked.

She sat up abruptly. "Anna!" she called. "Anna, I can hear you."

Hans sat up, turning his head just in time to see a head of red hair peaking in on them from behind the doorframe. "You could hear me?" asked Anna incredulously.

"How long have you been listening?" demanded Elsa, her jaw set in anger.

Anna ignored her. "What did I say?" she said, turning to look at someone beside her who was hidden from view. "Did I tell you, or did I tell you?"

A voice shushed her. "Anna, they'll know I'm here!"

"I can't believe this," said Elsa, who he noticed was very bright shade of red. "Kristoff, you, too?"

Anna giggled, and much to Hans's surprise, Kristoff stuck his head in from behind the doorframe.

"For the record, it was all Anna's idea."

"You snitch! Don't try to pin this on me. It's not like I dragged you around by the ear."

"Anna, I want you to quit this at once," said Elsa sternly.

"You should probably be a little more grateful to the person who covered for you last night," said Anna, snickering. "I had to play party host all by myself as well as come up with your alibi. I'm nice like that."

"First time in history you wake up early, and of course it's only because you want to spy on me, how typical." Elsa rolled her eyes, but to his surprise, her anger dissolved, and she began to laugh, covering her mouth with her hand as if to conceal it.

"Hey, not the first time," said Anna defensively, but she was laughing, too.

"You are the worst," said Elsa, whose laughter had gone silent but was apparently so hard that she now clutching her side in stitches.

"You mean the best." She turned, taking Kristoff by the hand as she quickly sauntered away, calling back to her older sister, "I'd like to see you try to deny that you two are together now!" Her laughter rang throughout the hallway.

Hans didn't speak that entire time. He couldn't; he could only watch the spectacle in fascination and amusement.

Elsa turned to face Hans again, still laughing behind her hand. "I'm sorry for that," she said, still very red in the face. "She can be so..."

"No, it's alright," he said, chuckling with amusement. "I'd forgotten."

"What did you forget?" asked Elsa.

He considered answering, but changed his mind and shook his head. "Nothing. It's good to be back is all."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I can see my writing improve but that makes previous chapters so painful to look at. Also Hans and Elsa are nerds. Are they finally together? It only took them 15 or so chapters. Please read & review.


	17. Moments

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry it's been so long. Don't worry, I haven't gone anywhere, I've just been so busy. I meant for this to be much longer. I'll probably post the second half soon, but I felt that I just needed to get something to you guys because it's been so long.
> 
> Cue romantic montage.

Day 1

They don't actually stay in bed all day, as she had promised. Elsa had gone off after her sister, chastising her for her improper behavior and telling her to respect their privacy. There's a lot of eye rolling and invasive questions, which Elsa brushes aside, but Anna agrees not to say anything so that they can do it on their own accord.

Then she remembers about a meeting with Arandelle's council, something that she "was sorry, but she really needed to go to." She's horribly guilty, but he doesn't mind; she'd given him a hasty apology and a kiss on the cheek as she'd gone, hobbling along as she struggled to put on her second heel.

Day 2

They go for a stroll in the courtyard, and she notices that as she walks he is always slightly behind her, his fingers catching the fabric of her white dress. The flowers look especially pretty that day in full bloom, the morning air still chilly after the spring showers. They are quiet and reserved, still careful with each other, still unsure. Each has their fair share of stolen glances, darting eyes. Each secretly craves intimacy despite the feeling being so foreign to both of them.

Day 5

There's the much dreaded but long awaited confrontation from Anna that Elsa knew was going to come sooner or later. The two of them are building snowmen together in one of their many rooms when she asks her older sister what happened. She's much too inquisitive for her own good and doesn't believe her sister when she says that "nothing happened, honestly!" Elsa struggles to keep her powers under control; she's been doing so well since the ball, relapsing would be the worst possible thing for her, not when she's so happy. Anna doesn't notice; she merely laughs and threatens that she'll just ask Hans if Elsa won't tell her. Severely put out, Elsa promptly ruins her sister's snowman. In retaliation, Anna knocks over hers as well.

Day 8

The couple go horseback riding and end up in some grassy field far from the castle grounds. There, they lay down in the long grass together and watch the clouds as they float on by, making shapes for them to guess—this one is a dragon, this one is a sled, this one is a snowman. Elsa challenges him to a race back to the castle; she wins, just barely, but she suspects that he may have let her so do on purpose. She catches him staring at her when their putting the horses back in the stables, but he quickly turns his head away, patting Sitron affectionately, and it's almost as if it never happened.

Day 12

They spend the afternoon in the library. Elsa does some light reading although she attends to her work as well. Hans tells her to pay him no mind, but it's a little hard for her to focus with him there, sitting across from her and watching her with an amused grin. She can feel his eyes on her, and she scowls at him crossly, telling him that it's quite important that she get this done, and she would be very appreciative if he could stop looking at her like that. Instead, he begins perusing the shelves, Elsa's eyes flitting over to him occasionally as she writes.

At last he settles down, plucking a book off the shelf and plunking down in one of the arm chairs, and for the the first time she realizes that he uses glasses when he reads. He's quite cute actually, and she smiles to herself despite her previous annoyance.

Day 13

Elsa wakes up to find that she must have stayed up late in the library the night before. Her neck hurts from sitting up all night at such an awkward angle, and when she sits up she looks around to find the room empty. She's a little disappointed, but she didn't know what else she really expected. However, almost immediately she notices a familiar coat draped over her shoulders like a blanket. Next thing she notices is a note left sticking out of her book in neat handwriting: "Sorry, didn't want to wake you. Hope you had a good night's sleep." It's not signed, but she knows who it's from.

Day 15

As promised, Anna goes to Hans for the details on that masquerade night. Unfortunately for her, his lips are sealed on such details, ("Come on, Elsa never tells me anything!" she pleads, but he merely shakes his head) but he can't stop grinning like an idiot, and she knows exactly what that means. Something about him is different; he's happy, but not in the same way as when he and Anna were together. His eyes are bright, his mind far away, he's much more quiet, she's pretty sure she caught a sigh from him once or twice. He's enamored, she can tell, and although she is certain she no longer is in love with him, a part of her wonders why he didn't love her in that way.

Day 20

They're curled up together by the fire after a long day. The quilts are warm and so is he, and for once she is, too—almost. The crackling of the flames lulls them to sleep, right there on the couch in each other's arms. Anna finds them there in the morning, snoring lightly, and the fire has long since gone out, but she doesn't wake them.

Day 21

Elsa tries once more to teach him to ice skate, this time not out in the courts but inside the castle walls. He's still not very good, but at least he no longer needs her support as he barely wobbles along on unsteady feet. She tries not to laugh, but it's such a stark contrast to how he usually carries himself with such a strong presence. He doesn't mind because he actually likes her guidance. It's only fair; they're each good and their particular form of dancing. However, she has him by the hand when at last he loses his balance, and they collapse together on the cold ice. They laugh it off awkwardly, but the ice is hard and both of them are sore from the crash. They lay there for a while as they watch each other's foggy breath rise into the air, their fingers intertwined and the cold chilling to the bone.

Day 25

He receives his first gift. It's a violin handcrafted especially for him, only made, of course, for one insidious purpose: she forces him to play. He's still quite rusty; it's been years since he's practiced, and Elsa finds him quite right in saying that he's probably mediocre at best, but the melody is pleasant on the ears, and she's enjoying herself even if he tries to snake his way out of it.

Day 27

She takes him up to the roof again in the late hours of the night. In the moonlight, he can't help but think that her near-white hair looks almost like a halo framing her face as she laughs. Elsa wants to stay up all night so that they can watch the sun rise. He's determined to see it through, but eventually he does fall asleep. Elsa lets him, his head slumping on her shoulder; she kisses his hair as the faint light of the morning just starts to peak out over the horizon.

Day 28

It's raining again; he's got his arms wrapped around her as they sit on her bed, no sound except for the gentle tap of the raindrops against the windowpanes and the low tune of the snow queen humming quietly to herself, eyes closed as she smiles contently.

"Care to share with us the song?" he asks her teasingly.

She shakes her head, embarrassed. "It's silly."

He coaxes her into giving in "just this once, then you never have to sing again," ("just this once?" "Just this once.") and with a sigh of resignation, she sits up and turns so that she's sitting opposite of him, her blue eyes meeting his green ones.

"My mothers would sing it sometimes. It's my favorite."

"Anytime you're ready." He's got a twinkle in his eye, and she can see he's fighting back a laugh.

She takes a deep breath, preparing herself before she begins, "How glad the many millions,

"Of Annabelles and Williams would be—"

"I know this song!"

"Don't interupt," she chastises him, but her grin mirrors his as she continues, "—to capture me.

"But you had such persistence,

"You wore down my resistance.

"I fell..."

She seems nervous at first, her voice quavering slightly, but as she keeps going she seems to be getting braver as her voice grows stronger. It's soft and sweet in his ear, the melody carrying him somewhere far away. He pretends the song is meant just for him.

"... And it was swell.

"It's not that you're attractive,

"But, oh, my heart grew active,

"When you came into view."

She intertwines her cool fingers with his, and he pulls her in closer to him. She can't hold back the grin anymore.

"I've got a crush on you, sweetie pie,

"All day and nighttime, hear me sigh,

"I never had the least notion,

"That I could fall, with so much emotion."

With each line she draws nearer to him, leaning in closer so that their faces are just inches apart. His gaze lingers on her lips, then up at her eyes, and he sees that she's looking right at him, barest traces of smile on the corners of her lips as she sings softly. Just a little closer...

"The whole world will pardon my mush,

"'Cause I've got a crush, my baby, on..."

Their lips are almost touching, and Hans closes his eyes. She kisses him, the tapping of the rain against the windowpanes bringing him back to the morning after the masquerade, and he realizes this is the first time they've kissed since then.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're wondering, the song is I've Got a Crush on You. My favorite version is the Sinatra version although there are others out there. I know it's not from the time period of the story, but I think if there can be talking snowmen then a song can be created a little earlier than it was in reality (Sorry, I'm being really snobby). On the audio I have, Sinatra joked that it so old that it was composed by Admiral Nelson, so that was part of the reason for my song choice. Like I said, I'll get part two out as soon as I can, especially since this took so long, and it's so short.
> 
> Also, one last thing. I'm considering changing the title. What do you guys think? I've been considering the name "Return To Me" (which incidently is the name of a mild rom com which has absolutely nothing in common with this fic), but I want to know what yoU guys think. Are you feeling it, or should I just keep this title?


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